A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert
by Shori Musei
Summary: -FIN- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on a family trip, he meets Bakura, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem- they're lost in the desert. YAOI
1. Escaped Freedom

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: *Sits there with a sign saying 'Will Give Pocky For Ownage of YGO'*  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, maybe some side Marik/Malik  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (don't like? Don't read.), death, angst, wierdness. Some splashes of humor here and there. All mentions of the words "hot dog" are meant in the literal sense, like the kind you buy at carnivals. No hentainess here. Oh, and I don't like the American Government too much. Expect mild government-bashing.  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. The police are after them both, and they're in the middle of a desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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The refridgerator door slammed shut with extreme force after the boy extracted a canned fruit drink. "Mom, I told you already! I don't want to go on this stupid trip!"  
  
Ryou sighed and stared pleadingly into his mother's matching chocolate eyes. The only difference between the two sets of orbs was that one was annoyed, while the other was reaching enraged. "Ryou, you know how much this means to your grandfather. Can't you be civil just this once?" She said, exasperatedly. She knew that bringing the silver-haired youth along on the family trip to the desert was by far not the best of ideas, but at the same time, she didn't want to leave him alone for two or three weeks. Pulling back a lock of her own pale blonde hair, she sighed in half-defeat. "Alright, Ryou. You still have to come on the trip, but you don't have to do anything else you don't want to, including sitting at the table with us. Is that fair enough?"  
  
Feeling his anger dissapating, Ryou remained silent as he sipped his fruit punch. "Alright, alright..." He turned away from his mother, he felt immense guilt starting to wash over him. He sighed a second time, his back still towards her. "I'm sorry." Apologized the boy, before running into the living room and up the stairs, skipping each second step in an attempt at reaching his room faster.  
  
"Don't worry about it, dear. Just don't forget to pack." Sighed the slender woman softly as her teenaged son was heard closing the door to his room upstairs.  
  
.  
  
Ryou sighed and flopped backwards onto his old mattress. He had had the thing since he was born, and couldn't find it in his heart to get rid of it and replace it with a newer mattress, though why he was so sentimental he didn't know. Because his mattress was so old, it was also very bouncy, and because it was very bouncy, he bounced up and down with his arms folded neatly behind his head until the bed decided he had enough bouncing for one life time.  
  
His thoughts were jumbled and quite incoherent as he lay on his bed, staring up at the painted stars on the ceiling. He remembered the first night he went to sleep underneath those stars. It was when he was about seven years old, and at the time he had a fascination with astronomy. His mother had allowed him to paint stars on his ceiling, and he had yet to paint over them. He shoved all thoughts of stars out of his mind, and went back to sorting out his other thoughts.  
  
One part of him felt extremely annoyed at merely having to leave the house for over half a month out of his summer vacation. Another part of him was glad to escape the lonley silence of his room, and to finally see a part of nature he had never really seen before. And yet another part of him knew nothing about what emotion to feel, and only knew that it was tired, and wanted more sleep. At this realization, Ryou turned onto his side and gazed at the neon green numbers displaying the time on his alarm-clock. The numbers proved it to be 11:05am. Ryou frowned. "No normal human should be awake this early in the morning during summer vacation." He muttered into his pillow as he turned on to his stomach. "Then again..." he thought aloud, "since when am I normal?" With a kind smirk and light laugh, Ryou closed his eyes and allowed sleep to claim him until he was to be awakened a second time that day.  
  
//  
  
"Law enforcers are the root of all Satanic influences," Decided the sixteen- year-old as he dug a hand-made skeleton key out of his pocket. Carefully inching towards the iron bars that held him prisoner, he slid a thin hand through the man-made evils known as jail cell bars, and turned the miniscule lock around, so that it was facing him. Luckily, he had escaped from a similar situation back in Egypt, and he had experience in breaking out of jail. However, his luck had run out upon a poorly planned attempt at sneaking into the United States of America. Not like that could keep the infamous Bakura down for long, though. Returning his thoughts back to the task at hand, Bakura quickly picked the lock and held the heavy metal object in his hand for a moment before throwing it inside his small pouch. Now that he had broken free of his pathetic little jail cell, only two things remained to be done: Get out of the perimeter of the prison, and not get caught again. Though he wasn't too sure about how he was going to follow the latter, he knew just how he was going to escape. Silently he thanked his years on the streets in Egypt.  
  
Pausing for just the briefest of moments to check his watch, he found it to be 11:05am. He rolled his eyes. `Most normal people are doing something productive right now.` A smirk crossed his face. `Then again, most normal people aren't attempting to escape from prison.`  
  
He slinked along the wall nearest the door to the outisde, bending low enough so that he could run without making noise, but not so low that he couldn't keep a clear image of his surroundings. Eventually, after what seemed like individual eternities, the white-haired prisoner reached the heavy metal door, the one thing keeping him from freedom. Silently, so as not to wake the other prisoners (although Bakura couldn't understand why they were still sleeping when it was almost noon), he brought out his skeleton key and picked at the lock. Of course, he knew he was picking the lock from the wrong side of the door, but he didn't really care. Where there's a will, there's a way, thought Bakura as the door clicked open. Something similar to a mix between a smirk and a grin crossed his harsh features for a fraction of a second, before he slipped outside, closing the door behind him without a sound at all.  
  
Now that he was out in the open, he was faced with another problem. There was about a hundred yards between where he was standing, and a large, iron gate. He noted the gate was open, a foolish mistake on the police's part. `Of course, I can't really call these amatures police if they can't keep their prisoners from escaping.` Glancing upwards, he saw a satanically placed video camera, monitoring the field that Bakura had to run through if he were to complete his escape. With the video camera and hundred yards of grass in mind, Bakura could only think one thing: Damn government.  
  
//  
  
"Ryou?" Asked Ryou's mother as she knocked on the door to her fifteen-year- old son's bedroom. "Ryou, honey, we're getting ready to go. Are you awake?" She twisted the doorknob back and forth, frowning upon the realization that the door was locked.  
  
"Yes, Mother." Came the reply though a yawn. "Gimme just a few more minutes..." Ryou pulled the blanket further over his head and groaned, he had just gotten to sleep. Glancing at his alarm clock with a glaring brown eye, the numbers glared back a formidable '12:20pm'. Ryou and the alarm clock promptly engaged themselves in an all-out glare war, until eventually nature took its course, and Ryou had to blink. `Damn government.` He heard a sigh from the other side of the door, and buried his head in his pillow.  
  
"Ryou, please open the door. You can sleep in the car as much as you like..."  
  
He dug his face further into the pillow. "Just please let me sleep, Mom..." Ryou's body started moving against his will as he flung his pale legs over the edge of the bed, pulling down the fabric on his basketball shorts. He had never actually played basketball, but the shorts were comfortable, so he decided to put them to use and wear them as pajama bottoms. He shivered into his loose-fitting sweatshirt. It was too cold to move, even though it was in the middle of the summer. Forcing himself to move, he shuffled over to his dresser and pulled out a neatly packed suitcase of clothing. Luckily, he had packed the night before out of pure boredom. With a sigh, he slipped into a pair of sneakers and unlocked his door.  
  
Instantly, his mother was upon him in a one-armed embrace, her deep earth- coloured eyes crinkling in a smile. "It'll only be a few minutes before we get there. It shouldn't take long at all."  
  
.  
  
"Only a few minutes?" Ryou sighed, leaning his head on the window of his family's dark green Ford Explorer. They had been on the road for ages, and all the lithe boy wanted to do was sleep. However, sleep was impossible with the loud music blaring from the speakers on each side of the car. Suddenly, he was lurched forward as his mother steered into a dilapidated looking gas station with a mini-mart in back. As hungry as he was, Ryou's urge to sleep overpowered him, and he clicked open his seat belt, lying down gratefully and taking up the entire back seat. He had just managed to close his eyes when his mother opened the driver's side door and stepped out. He shrugged. Sleep was the only thing on his mind right about now.  
  
//  
  
Bakura sighed. It was way past one in the afternoon. He wasn't quite sure how he had done it, but he had managed to escape past the gate without being caught, and, furthermore, he had made it to an old, run down gas station with a single car parked near the gasing pumps. He watched as a tall, pale, blonde woman stepped from the vehicle and opened the trunk. With his expert gaze, Bakura noted that when the trunk had been closed, she had forgotten to lock it. He grinned. Now or never, he thought. Making sure she wasn't going to return to the car any time soon, Bakura crawled over to the trunk, and hopped in the back without disturbing the many suitcases in the hatch.  
  
Carefully, so as not to be spotted, he peered over the back seat to see if anyone else was in the car. To his relief, he saw nothing but a sleeping look-a-like of himself. He turned around and covered himself with thin blankets he had stolen from the prison before escaping. A few moments passed by before his eyes shot open, and he sat up, shrugging the blankets off. `He looks just like me...` Bakura realized, arching a thin eyebrow.  
  
His sudden motions caused the younger of the two to awaken, and Ryou sat up, blinking in confusion until his own chocolate eyes met ones so similar to his own that he had to do a double take. Once he was sure there was no mirror inexplicably placed in the back hatch, Ryou parted his lips to speak. "Uhm... who are you, and what are you doing in the back of my car?"  
  
Bakura instantly placed his hand over Ryou's mouth, silencing him. "Listen, kid. I can't tell you who I am just yet. I'll tell you later. For now, act as if you don't know I'm back here. If you're quiet, I'll be quiet too. Agreed?" He spoke harshly, trying to get his point across without having to worry about betrayal.  
  
Nodding quickly, Ryou was relieved when the stranger removed their hand from his mouth. Although he was somewhat hesitant, he laid back down and shifted his position a few times until he fit snugly into the curves of the car. All thoughts of his strange look-a-like chased from his head by exhaustion, he closed his eyes and fell asleep just as his mother returned to the car with a small soft drink and hot dog in her hands.  
  
.  
  
"Ryou? Ryou, wake up, I got some food for you." She cooed, shaking her son's shoulder gently. Upon seeing his tired eyes open, she smiled and waited for him to sit up before she handed him the soda and hot dog. "I'll be right back. I need a couple more dollars to get myself something to eat."  
  
Nodding, Ryou took a sip of the soda, finding it to be 7-Up, his favorite. He waited until his mother had reentered the mini-mart before tearing the hot dog in half and taking another sip of his soda. Turning towards the back of the car, he called out softly.  
  
"Hey, you want some of my lunch?"  
  
Bakura blinked and pulled the blanket back, revealing a sharp brown eye. "I thought I told you to keep quiet about me."  
  
Shaking his head, Ryou replied, "My mom went back in the mini-mart. I'm not really that hungry, but you look starved... Here." He handed Bakura the rest of the soda and other half of the hot dog. "You can have it... I'll eat something later on."  
  
The older of the two narrowed his eyes suspiciously as he glared into the other's eyes. The innocent and gentle expression proclaimed no wickedness at all. Softening his gaze on the smaller boy, he nodded. "Appreciated." With that, he quickly ate his half of the hot dog and drank the remainder of the soda, silently grateful for Ryou's kindness. He made a mental note to thank the boy one way or another, even though he didn't like the idea of being so social. He covered himself with the blanket once again, and dissapeared into silence.  
  
Ryou's smile was warm and gentle as it spread across his face. He decided he liked the stranger, as rough as he appeared to be. And once he reached his grandfather's house on the borderline of the Mojave desert, he was going to run away with this other boy. `Anything is better than two weeks of eating ice-cold oatmeal and having to listen to hour-long rants about the damn government and its hipocracy.` Thought Ryou as he, too, allowed sleep to cover him until awakening was necessary. And this time, he wasn't at all frightened of the stranger sleeping in the back hatch as his mother returned to the car and started the engine.  
  
`Yeah,` he decided, `I'm going to like this trip after all.`  
  
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Well, there's the first chapter! I hope you like it!  
  
You + Reviews = Happy Authoress = Faster Updates = Happier You!  
  
Ja ne!  
  
~Shori Musei~ 


	2. The Beating of His Heart

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own. Never have, and probably won't, seeing as I spent a majority of my $7 on Coffee Bean this morning... Mmm. I like Pure Vanilla coffee-free Ice Blendeds ^__^  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, maybe some side Marik/Malik  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), death, angst, wierdness. Splashes of humor here and there. Mild bashing of the American Government because I'm not too thrilled with the way the country's being run. Some Bakura OOC  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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When Ryou awoke four hours later, the first thing he thought of was the quiet boy who had been occupying the back hatch. The second thing he thought of, was that he was starving and his stomach was growling, although he didn't regret sharing his lunch for a moment. And the third thing Ryou thought of, was that someone was staring at him. At this thought, he opened his eyes to find a strangely familiar pair of deep brown eyes staring back at him. Ryou blinked for a moment, before remembering who the eyes belonged to. "Oh! It's you. I'm sorry."  
  
The elder shook his head. "Listen. I figure I should at least tell you my first name. Call me Bakura. Nothing else."  
  
Ryou nodded. "My name is Ryou..." Blinking, Ryou looked around, realizing he was still in the car. Upon catching sight of his grandfather's house, and the warm, friendly glow of lights coming from inside, he glared. He could hear the laughter coming from inside the building, and he hated it. "That," Ryou said, nodding his head towards the house, "is my family."  
  
"Some family." Bakura commented under his breath. "Your mother went inside a couple hours ago. Didn't bother to wake you up, and once I figured she would be gone for a while, I decided I'd be nice and stay here until you woke up."  
  
"Figures she wouldn't wait for me." Ryou muttered, sighing as he lay back down across the back seat. "I never even wanted to come on this trip in the first place..." His voice trailed off as he looked at Bakura curiously. "Why /are/ you in the back of my car anyways, Bakura?"  
  
Bakura glanced up sharply at Ryou, half wondering why he was allowing the small boy to see his face and hear his voice so much. "You tell anyone, and I swear I'll kill you."  
  
A light smirk crossed Ryou's face. "I have no one to tell. I don't speak to my family as often as they'd like me to..." He added bitterly in a low mumble, but Bakura caught every note of misery escaping Ryou's lips.  
  
"Heh, guess you're right." Bakura watched the people inside the house carefully for a few moments before turning back to Ryou and speaking. "I'm from Egypt. Prison escapee. They caught me while I was trying to sneak into this country." He wasn't quite sure why, but he felt he could trust Ryou. The gentle and innocent, calm expression in those deep brown eyes created a vortex that drew Bakura to their owner.  
  
"Wow." Ryou said, gazing at Bakura in awe. "Sounds like quite the adventure... Though I can't say jail must have been too fun." He shifted in his seat, creating room for Bakura to sit next to him if he were to see fit. "So... What do you plan on doing now that you're outta jail?"  
  
Bakura shrugged. "Find somewhere to live."  
  
Ryou looked at him curiously. "But wouldn't they have people out there looking for you?"  
  
"No." Bakura said flatly. "There's tons of crimes a lot more serious than sneaking into the country. Murder, rape, abuse, for example. They probably won't even notice I escaped." He turned around so that his back was facing Ryou. "Listen, kid. I'd love to stay and chat," Bakura started, although talking was never one of his hobbies, "but I have to get going. Can't stay anywhere within this area for too long. I'll see you 'round." He motioned to get out of the car by grabbing his small tote bag.  
  
"Wait!" Ryou exclaimed softly, grabbing Bakura's hand. "Take me with you. I can't stand living with my family any longer. Please, Bakura. I won't be a nuisance. Please. Just take me away from here, let me come with you." He gazed pleadingly into Bakura's eyes.  
  
Bakura sighed, seeing the lonliness in the backs of Ryou's eyes. He, himself, had grown up with that lonliness as a part of his daily life. "Usually, I'd say no..." Bakura said carefully, watching Ryou's eyes for any signs of emotions. "But I know that look in your eyes. It's a look I've worn since birth. Alright. You can come."  
  
The look of gratitude and happiness that spread across Ryou's face was enough to make Bakura himself smile a little. Before he knew just what he was doing, Ryou had wrapped his arms around Bakura in a genuinely happy embrace. No words were needed, but Bakura could sense that Ryou was deeply thankful. The fifteen-year-old hesitated before releasing Bakura from his hug. There was something about Bakura that he liked. "Let's get going." Ryou stated.  
  
"Bring only what you can carry," Bakura advised.  
  
Ryou nodded and hopped into the back hatch beside Bakura. He dug through some clutter until he pulled out a small black suitcase. "Everything I need is in here. I also have some money in case we need it."  
  
Bakura shook his head in positive affirmation. "We'll probably be trekking across the desert. Do you have any water on you?"  
  
"Water... water..." Ryou muttered, searching through his suitcase. A frown. "No, I don't. But I remember reading somewhere that it's possible to get moist nurishment if you eat a certian part of a cactus tree." Silently, Ryou thanked his study habits.  
  
"Good enough." Bakura said. "Now let's really get going. We need to travel while it's still cool out."  
  
Ryou nodded a second time, and climbed over the back seat. Opening the the left-sided door, he hopped out and quickly ran around to the back. He opened the hatch, and Bakura wriggled his way out. The two exchanged brief smiles before they ran off into the quickly chilling night, leaving no traces of where they had went for Ryou's family.  
  
//  
  
"Really, now, you mean you actually got Ryou to come?" An elderly man, apparently in his early 70s, was sitting at the head of a large table. His bright blue eyes matched only those of his wife, a frail woman in her late 60s with a kind smile and dependable nature. He looked towards his daughter with a light shining in his eyes. "I'm so glad he could come. It's been years since I've seen that boy!"  
  
A weak smile crossed Ms. Bakura's face as she stood, straightening out the folds in her skirt. "He's asleep in the car. I'll go get him." She said as she turned and left through the front door. Stepping out into the cold night air, she wondered mildly why her parents had decided to live in a desert-community.  
  
Once she reached the car, she motioned to unlock the driver's side door when she realized with mild suspicion that the car was already unlocked, when she distinctly remembered locking it. Due to the darkness outside, she was unable to see inside the car until she pulled the door open. Her eyes widened.  
  
"RYOU?!"  
  
She sat on her knees on the back seat, and bent over so she could dig through the hatch. Upon finding absolutely no one in the car besides herself, she quickly exited the car and cupped her hands around her small pink lips. "RYOU?! WHERE ARE YOU?!" Her voice traveled off into the distance, but there was no returned call. She ran back to the car and searched for Ryou's black suitcase. Tears sprung to her eyes when she didn't find it anywhere in the car. Inhaling deeply, she attempted to calm herself down as she once again left the car.  
  
Panicking, she darted back inside the house, catching her parents and a newly spotted pet parakeet off guard. "Ryou's missing!"  
  
//  
  
"Ryou." Bakura said suddenly, breaking the silence between the two. "You didn't react that much when you first saw me... Why?"  
  
The smaller boy shrugged. "I didn't see the point in panicking and shrieking. First, it would have gotten my mother's attention, and second, if it turned out you were some kind of crazed murderer, it would have cost me my life."  
  
Bakura glanced at Ryou, and saw a slight sadness emitting from his eyes. "That is a good point. Most prisoners I've come across would have killed you in that instance, had you made any other reaction."  
  
"Yeah..." Ryou trailed off. The air was quickly reaching freezing, and he hadn't brought along a thick enough sweater. About half an hour ago, he had given his thickest jacket to Bakura. He didn't regret it, but he really wished he had another jacket like the one Bakura was now wearing.  
  
Bakura saw Ryou's shivering, and stopped walking momentarily to check his watch. The digital glow-in-the-dark numbers read '10:02pm'. "Are you tired?" He asked as he saw Ryou fighting to hold back a yawn.  
  
"A little... I can last a little longer if you want to get further away from my grandparent's place though." Ryou was obviously lying though half- lidded eyes and slightly slurred speach. His walking was forced and heavy, as if the boy was running out of energy for the day.  
  
A flash of compassion crossed Bakura's stone-cold features as he shifted his shoulder bag, and slung Ryou's left arm over his shoulder, grabbing on to the British youth's waist to support him. "Think you can last about a mile?"  
  
Ryou nodded, sleep clouding his mind. "I'll... I'll try." Leaning into Bakura, Ryou blinked harshly a few times to try and redirect his attention on walking.  
  
.  
  
Fourty-five minutes later, Ryou was barely awake. His legs were moving mechanically, not by his own discretion. Bakura was having to nearly drag his lithe aquaintance across the sands. Bakura, being born and raised in Egypt for thirteen of his sixteen years of life, was greatly accustomed to walking long distances in scorching hot sand, and sand in general. He knew, however, that Ryou was not as used to deserts as he was. Finally, Bakura stopped walking upon finding a secure looking stone and shrugged his shoulderbag off. He felt strangely protective of Ryou, for whatever reasons he couldn't quite understand. Maybe it was because Ryou reminded Bakura of what he used to be like as a child.  
  
He shook Ryou's frame gently until he got a response from the near- exhausted boy. "Ryou? We're stopping for the night."  
  
"Huh?" Ryou asked, his senses fogged over with an intense need for sleep. He peered at Bakura through misty vision.  
  
Bakura helped him to sit down as he himself sat with his back against the stone, digging through his shoulderbag for the blankets he had stowed away. Ryou leaned on to him heavily. At last he found what he was looking for. He spread his feet shoulder width-apart, and pulled Ryou into his lap, covering him with both blankets as he leaned back, using the jacket Ryou had lent him as a pillow of sorts. Ryou quickly fell asleep listening to the steady beating of Bakura's heart.  
  
.  
  
Bakura sighed as he watched Ryou sleep. He gently stoked the lithe boy's soft, silver-coloured hair and reminisced about his past, when he was able to wear the same innocent expression. But that was long, long ago. The reason Bakura had left his home in Egypt wasn't because his family was poor. It wasn't because he didn't have any friends.  
  
It was because his father hated him with a passion, and beat him almost daily. Eventually, Bakura had had enough of the abuse and ran away. He didn't know if his parents were still alive, and quite frankly he didn't care. He had never been happy at home, even if his father would leave him alone. But, Bakura realized, he wasn't the least bit sad now that Ryou had come along on his adventure. He sighed again. This was going to be a long night.  
  
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Here's chapter two! I hope you liked it. Please R/R!  
  
_**I am requiring a MINIMUM of FIFTEEN reviews before I update**_  
  
~Shori Musei~ 


	3. Lead Away

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own YuGiOh, though I can assure you that if I did, the show would have yaoi. Lots of yaoi. ^__^ Lots of fluffly BxR, MxM, YxY, and SxJ.  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, maybe some side Marik/Malik  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), death, angst, wierdness. Splashes of humor here and there. Mild bashing of the American Government because I'm not too thrilled with the way the country's being run.  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
WARNING! THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS SPOUSAL ABUSE AND DEATH. IF YOU HAVE ANY ISSUES WITH THESE KINDS OF TOPICS, PLEASE E-MAIL OR INSTANT MESSAGE ME AND I WILL TELL YOU WHAT HAPPENS IN THIS CHAPTER MINUS THE ABUSE PARTS.  
  
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~(dream.sequence)~  
  
"Stupid, worthless woman! What mistake of Ra even allowed you to exist?!" A young man with silvery hair stood over a woman no older than twenty-seven at the greatest. Blood was dripping from her scalp and tinging her scraggly light tresses.  
  
She curled into a ball with her back facing her abusive husband, temporarily protecting her stomach from any more punches. Tears stung her cut up cheeks as they streamed from her eyes in salty rivers. He kicked her back, "Get up! I'm sick of you!"  
  
The woman remained where she was, biting down on her tongue to keep from screaming out in agony. She coughed up blood, and cringed at the coppery taste infiltrating every inch of her mouth. Her mind went blank with pain as she suddenly found herself spun around and lying in a pool of her own blood on the linolium tiling of the kitchen floor. From the living room, a frightened ten-year-old Bakura stood frozen in his spot.  
  
Bakura watched helplessly as his father picked his mother up by the collar of her shirt and slammed her against the kitchen wall. Her head smacked into the plaster, drawing even more blood from her already bleeding skin. The man punched her over and over again, grinning sadistically each time she would cry out. Bakura couldn't stand to watch any more. Making sure to be completely silent, he ran upstairs to his room and sobbed into his pillow. Eventually, he heard the cries from downstairs turn into pained whimpers. Pretty soon, even the whimpers went silent. Bakura paused in his crying, hardly daring to move. Something heavy hit the floor downstairs.  
  
~(end.dream.sequence)~  
  
Sharp mahogony orbs flew open, and Bakura glanced around sharply, unaware of where he was for a few moments before it all came flooding back to him. His heart was pounding in his chest as he took deep breaths to try and calm himself down. Frame shaking, he cast a wary glance down to the sleeping Ryou in his arms. The peaceful look on his face in itself was enough to bring Bakura's speeding heartbeat down to a normal level. Bakura sighed.  
  
His vision suddenly became blurred as tears began pooling in his eyes. That particular memory, of his mother's death, always came to haunt him at the most inopportune times. Blinking his eyelids rapidly to avoid crying, the sixteen-year-old carefully unwound himself from Ryou's arms and lay him down in the sand, making sure that the blankets covered him up enough to keep him warm. Ryou shifted in his sleep and made a slight sound of discomfort. Bakura frowned at the boy before his smirk returned to its place on his thin lips. He set off into the pre-dawn light, hoping to return before it got too hot. And also, before Ryou woke up.  
  
.  
  
Bakura walked silently along the top of high sand dune. He kept his eyes intense as he searched for a possible path he could lead Ryou through without too much hassle. He had just found a path that seemed suitable enough when he suddenly lost sight of it and found himself on his back.  
  
A scream escaped his lips as he slid down the side of the dune, tumbling over himself as he fell. At one point, he almost inhaled a mouthfull of warm desert sand, but he managed to cough it up. The fall seemed to last an eternity, until he heard a loud crash and his head, along with the right side of his body and tibia[1] began to burn in pain.  
  
He groaned as he blinked his vision into clarity. He felt his scalp for injuries, and was extremely relieved when there was no blood. Quietly, he murmured a thanks to Ra for sparing his head from any wounds as he began checking the rest of his aching body for anything that might hinder his attempt at freedom. Glancing over to his leg, he found the denim around it to be damp and drunk with a dark moistness Bakura could only assume to be blood. He winced as he pulled back his jeans, and saw a bloodied wound at least an inch deep in his leg.  
  
Dark eyes jammed shut as he spat into his wound. Though he wasn't quite sure if it would work in cleaning it any, he wasn't about to return to Ryou with half his leg gone. When he decided his injury was okay enough to allow him the ability to walk, he shakily stood and began trekking back to the rock he had fallen asleep against the previous night.  
  
//  
  
Gentle earthen eyes opened only to instantly close as Ryou found himself waking to a facefull of hot desert sand. He grumbled into the grains of heat, using his arms to push himself up into a sitting position. Spitting some sand out of his mouth, he coughed and gagged until his airway was clean once more. A pale hand lifted and brushed any remaining sand from his strands of snowy hair. Ryou blinked his eyes and clenched his jaw shut to hold back a yawn as he glanced around for Bakura. Sigh. His mind drifted to last night...  
  
He distinctly remembered falling asleep in Bakura's arms, against Bakura's chest, and having the firm, steady beating of the older boy's heart lull him into dreamland. Standing, he tried to find hints as to where Bakura might have gone. For a second, Ryou considered the fact that he might have been too trusting, and simply been abandoned somewhere in the desert. He began to dwell on that thought as he wandered around the area. Perhaps his trusting nature had finally gotten the better of him. As he motioned to sit down, regardless of how fiery the sand was, he noticed Bakura's sack was still present. Blinking, he reached for the thin-fibered bag, and barely had a chance to peek inside when it was snatched from under his nose. Ryou looked up suddenly as his pulse started racing. His innocent eyes locked with an angry pair of deep orbs.  
  
"What in hell are you doing?"  
  
Ryou froze as Bakura yelled at him, so much different from the almost compassionate disposition he had held just the day before. "I... I wasn't meaning to take anything. I just wanted to know where you were..." the youth's voice held pure honesty as he spoke with his head bowed in shame.  
  
Bakura grunted a response as he examined the untouched contents of his shoulderbag. "Don't ever let me catch you going near my property again." The Egyptian glared.  
  
"I promise." Ryou mumbled apologetically. "I'm sorry."  
  
A sigh escaped Bakura's lips. He found it very hard to remain angry at the boy. His gaze softened and he sat down beside Ryou, creating a small pattern in the sand with the tip of his index finger. "I did some exploring of the area around us. Quite rocky, and definetly dangerous..." He pulled lightly at a bloody spot on his jeans. "I slipped up and tripped while exploring. Got a pretty bloody scratch."  
  
"Let me see it." Ryou said instantly, turning his head and peering worriedly at Bakura.  
  
"Fine." Bakura grasped the ends of his pant leg and pulled the fabric up to his knee, keeping his face emotionless as pain seared into his wound when the denim brushed over it.  
  
The paled skin on Bakura's leg was broken by a mangled and gnarled wound. Blood was still oozing from the middle of the cut. Ryou had to fight to keep his lunch from the previous day down as he watched the red liquid pool in the depression. Apparently, Bakura hadn't gotten a mere scratch, as he had phrased it, for it appeared to Ryou that nearly a fourth of the skin on Bakura's leg was missing.  
  
Wordlessly, Ryou took his suitcase, which doubled as a carry-on backpack, off his shoulders, and dug through it until he found a white cotton shirt. He began tearing it in half as Bakura watched, mildly interested in exactly what Ryou was planning to do. "Give me your leg," said the British teenager, as he moved closer to Bakura's injured limb. He started wrapping it around the wound when Bakura cut him off.  
  
"What in hell? Why're you bandaging me up?"  
  
"Because," Ryou said as he took the two ends of fabric and tied a loose knot, "if you don't keep it away from infections in one way or another, that 'scratch' as you called it could turn into something much more dangerous... perhaps even fatal."  
  
A thin silver eyebrow arched in curiosity. "Oh, really?" He shrugged and sat back, letting Ryou finish with the bandaging. "If it turns out that I do die, do me one favor, 'kay, kid?"  
  
Without a reason or even warning, tears sprung into Ryou's eyes. He shook his head slightly so that his hair covered his face while he regained his composure. Once he was sure he was able to speak without giving away that he had almost cried, Ryou shrugged his hair away from his face, and looked at Bakura's blank face. "I'm not going to let you die, Bakura." When he heard a somewhat annoyed sigh escape the other's lips, he continued. "But yes, go on."  
  
"Keep me the hell away from Egypt."  
  
Ryou blinked at Bakura's comment, but nodded just the same. "Will do... But I'm still not going to let you get even close to dying."  
  
"Whatever." Bakura grumbled. Ryou sighed from somewhere behind him.  
  
"Hey, Bakura?"  
  
"What?"  
  
The smile that played its way across Ryou's face was warm and caring as it entrapped Bakura in its beauty. Bakura took a moment to admire the slight, yet subltly powerful build of the smaller boy. Each lock of Ryou's cloudy hair outlined his perfectly sculpted shoulders without even touching them in front. He almost seemed to glow with ethereal elegance and beauty. Bakura was so lost in observing the captivating presence of Ryou that he didn't even hear the question he was asked.  
  
"Bakura!" Ryou exclaimed, snapping the older's attention back to reality. "Are you okay? You kinda zoned out just now..."  
  
The Egyptian nodded. "I'm fine. What was it you were asking me?" He arched his eyebrow curiously as Ryou's expression turned serious.  
  
"Why'd you dissapear to this morning? I remember you were there when I fell asleep, but when I woke up, you were gone."  
  
An image of the trail Bakura had seen earlier reappeared in his mind. "Oh. Right. I found the perfect escape route. Come on." He said, standing. "Let's get a move on. I know last night you were tired, but today we can't afford to stop unless we're going to pass out, or something similar to that effect. Understood?" Ryou nodded. "In that case, gather your belongings and let's head off."  
  
Ryou did as he was told and slipped his suitcase-turned-backpack onto his shoulders and stood. "Lead away." He smiled.  
  
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Ack... This chapter was short compared to the rest. Either way, I really hope you're liking this story! R/R  
  
_**I'm requiring a MINIMUM of THIRTY reviews before I update. Come on now. That's just fifteen more.**_  
  
[1] Tibia- That part of your leg between your knee and ankle. I didn't know what to call it so I asked my mom and she told me what it is.  
  
~Shori Musei~ 


	4. Returning the Favor

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Dislcaimer: I have yet to aquire the buisness skills necessary to own YuGiOh. Sorry, folks. No on-screen yaoi today.  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, maybe some side Marik/Malik  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), death, angst, some Bakura OOC maybe. For D, Tia, and 'Kate' *giggles and looks at Tia* yes, I would update for you anyways... ^_^  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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"How long has it been since we started off?" Ryou asked as he and Bakura passed yet another sand dune. The sun was beating down on Ryou's back as he trudged around various boulders and cacti. Even though he had sneakers on, he was quite sure that by the time Bakura reached wherever it was he wanted to go, his shoes would have long since melted.  
  
"About three hours." Bakura said as he stopped walking and waited for Ryou. "Getting tired already?"  
  
Ryou groaned. "No, just thirsty..." His vision was blurring slightly from dehydration, but he refused to collapse into weakness like had the previous day. But after walking for almost three hours straight, he was starting to get kind of tired. Ryou closed his eyes for a moment to yawn; a mistake which would cost him as he tripped over something protruding from the desert ground. "Ack!"  
  
Bakura turned around upon hearing something fall behind him. His eyes glazed over momentarily as a brutal memory of his mother's death came back to haunt him. He was so lost in the memory of that horrible night, that he didn't even hear it as a pained and frightened yelp emitted from the smaller boy.  
  
"BA-BAKURA!" Ryou had his entire body, minus his left ankle, curled into a ball as a rattle snake hissed its way towards him. He tried to remain as silent as was possible, although he visibly shook every time the snake would open its mouth and bear three-inch long fangs, dripping with a poisonus substance. "Bakura...!"  
  
The Egyptian snapped out of his trance and, upon seeing the snake approaching his young comrade, cursed in his native language. He reached into his tote and pulled out the first heavy item he could find; it just happened to be the lock he had picked upon escaping from prison. "Back off!" Bakura shouted at the reptile. He threw the lock at the snake's head with perfect aim. The iron lock smashed into the rattler's head and cracked the skull with a sickening crunch. Bakura paused for a moment to make sure the snake was dead. He climbed over a couple medium-sized boulders and clenched right below the snake's head with his fist.  
  
Silence reigned over the area for a few moments until Bakura was sure the lock had killed it. "It's dead." He stated, releasing the breath he hadn't been aware was held in.  
  
Ryou looked up at Bakura as the older of the two flung the snake's body off to the side. Bakura sat hunched on his knees as he picked up the lock. "This thing sure proved itself useful..." He turned back to Ryou. "Come on. Let's get going... Had enough excitement for today." He stood up and motioned to reach for his tote as Ryou remained stationary. "What're you waiting for? Come on, let's go."  
  
"I-I can't." Ryou admitted softly, looking down.  
  
"What?" Bakura asked, turning back around. "Why not?"  
  
Ryou pointed meakly at his left ankle. "I can't move it... It hurts..."  
  
A thin silver eyebrow arched with mild worry attatched to it. "Did the snake bite you? Let me see." Bakura pulled back the fabric of Ryou's pants and inspected the youth's ankle. He was deeply relieved when he found no bite marks: There wouldn't be a way he could get Ryou to a hospital for treatment, and there were two main reasons for that. One, he was a prison escapee, and second, he couldn't remember the location of a hospital close enough. "Well, that's good. It seems you only scared it by doing whatever you did. If it had bit you, there wouldn't be any way I know of to treat the wound."  
  
A light sigh of relief escaped Ryou's lips. "I still can't move it though..." He looked up pleadingly at Bakura. Ryou didn't want to be left in the desert, all alone and with no idea where he was. "Please don't leave me here, Bakura."  
  
Bakura almost looked shocked. Sure, he was a prison escapee, and back in Egypt he had a bad reputation for a thief, and he had a bit of a sadistic side at times, but he did have honor. And because he had honor and self respect, there was no way he would leave someone like Ryou alone in unfamiliar territory. He shook his head. "I might have been in jail, but I am human. I wouldn't leave you here." He bent down and picked Ryou up to his feet, and slung his arm around the boys' waist, much as he had the previous night.  
  
.  
  
"Okay... This isn't working." Bakura said, stating the obvious. He was too tall, thus making his shoulder out of firm reach for Ryou, whose disabled ankle prevented him from walking correctly. The two had spent the past hour or so tripping over eachother at random intervals until they both agreed to stop their trek for a little while.  
  
Ryou nodded, and leaned into Bakura's arm so he could rest his ankle. "I'm sorry for slowing you down like this. I mean, I hardly even know you, and you're already doing so much for me--" The fifteen-year-old was cut off as Bakura knelt down infront of him, although his back was facing the smaller of the two. "Er... Bakura?"  
  
"Well, get on. It's not every day I decide to give piggy-back rides to people."  
  
Ryou simply stood and blinked.  
  
Bakura sighed. "Your ankle is injured. If you want it to heal, you can't put so much pressure on it. Hurry up, get on my back."  
  
"Okay." Ryou said as he climbed on to Bakura's back, blushing slightly at how developed the Egyptian's muscles were. Bakura locked his elbows against Ryou's knees and stood.  
  
"Hold on tight." Bakura said as he started off. He couldn't see it, but a smile bright enough to light the dark side of the moon was present on Ryou's face.  
  
//  
  
The sun was starting to set by the time Bakura finally admitted to being tired. In truth, he had the stamina to carry Ryou for a while longer, but Ryou refused to put too much pressure on Bakura.  
  
As they were walking, Ryou drifted in and out of sleep as he fought to stay awake. He enjoyed being this close to the other boy, and he definetly enjoyed being held tight in a strong embrace the night before. Ryou felt himself zoing out into sleep in timing with a feeling similar to that of falling down an elevator shaft.  
  
His warm chocolate eyes blazed open, and he blinked, unaware of his surroundings for a moment until he looked down and found himself on top of Bakura. A blush spread across his pale cheeks upon realizing that his lips were mere millimeters from those of his Egyptian comrade.  
  
Bakura smirked. "Well? You gonna kiss me or not?"  
  
Ryou paled even more, which was somewhat strange since he turned a shade of red bright enough to outdo the light from the sun. "Uhm... I... Bakura... I..." he stuttered, his cheeks burning. He looked down as Bakura shifted his position so that he was sitting. Ryou slid off Bakura's waist and sat in the older boy's lap.  
  
A cool hand touched his chin and lifted his face up. Ryou's unsure eyes met Bakura's confident, almost lazy earthen orbs. "Afraid?" Bakura gently drew Ryou's face closer to his. "Don't worry. You don't have to do a thing." With a tenderness Ryou didn't know Bakura was capable of, the sixteen-year- old pushed his lips against Ryou's. It was a simple kiss, nothing extravagent, but Bakura did mean something behind it. He pulled away a few seconds later, gazing into Ryou's eyes. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"  
  
Ryou stared at Bakura in pleasant shock, hardly daring to believe what just happened. He remained silent as Bakura continued to keep eye contact with him. Eventually, something in Ryou's mind told him to respond. "Uhm, n- no... I-It wasn't bad..." he dared to glance away for a moment. He had always believed that one's first kiss should have some kind of meaning behind it, but as Ryou looked back to Bakura, his heart fell in realization that the kiss was probably empty.  
  
The last flickers of sunlight dissapeared behind mountians of rock and desert off in the distance, and the orangey light that reflected in the backs of Bakura's eyes vanished along with it. "Good." Bakura said. Something that wasn't exactly a smile by dictionary definition of the word, but was enough of a smile to be taken as one, crossed his face as Ryou snuggled up against him. The temperature was quickly dropping, and Ryou's short-sleeved shirt was proving to be useless.  
  
"Bakura?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Why are we on the ground anyways? Weren't we walking?" Ryou had almost forgotten entirely about the fall.  
  
By the momentary blank look on Bakura's face, he had forgotten how his foot had caught in between a couple of rocks and he had lost his balance. "I tripped." Bakura said flatly, wrapping his arms around Ryou's shoulders.  
  
"You okay?" asked Ryou, genuince concern prominent alongside his accent.  
  
Bakura nodded. "Yeah. I'm fine."  
  
A smile draped itself across Ryou's features as he lay his head atop Bakura's chest. He was beginning to feel very calm around the other. "Hey, Bakura?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
Ryou picked his head off Bakura's chest, and smiled again, tilting his head to the side slightly. "Thanks for saving me earlier... You really did save my life."  
  
"I guess I did, didn't I?" Bakura said, smirking sublty and closing his eyes, falling asleep.  
  
.  
  
Ryou gazed at Bakura for a long time after he had fallen asleep. Gentle breaths raised and lowered Bakura's chest as eyebrows would occasionally furrow, only to relax moments later. What really caught Ryou's attention was the soft curve of Bakura's lips. Slightly parted, they glimmered in the moonlight, and gave their owner an almost ethereal appearance. Held tight in Bakura's arms, Ryou couldn't move too much, lest he awaken the boy holding him. Carefully, Ryou leaned forward and humbly pressed his lips against those of the Egyptian. The kiss lasted a few seconds before Ryou reopened his eyes and watched the face of the other through half open eyelids.  
  
"Bakura..." Ryou whispered, snuggling deeper into the strong arms holding him. Sleep quickly took over him.  
  
.  
  
A few minutes later, one sharp brown eye peeked open and crinkled into a smile.  
  
"Love you too, Ryou."  
  
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^_^ Thanks to D!  
  
_**I am requiring a MINIMUM of FORTY-FIVE reviews before I continue. 15 more!**_  
  
Note: The minimum requirement of reviews increases by 15 each chapter... I think that's pretty reasonable.  
  
~Shori Musei~ 


	5. Nightmare

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Dislcaimer: $5 ain't gonna buy me YGO, Mr. Law-Man  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, maybe some side Marik/Malik, hinted Seto/Joey in this and possibly other chapter(s).  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), death, angst, some Bakura OOC maybe. Here's your update Kate ^_^ And a shoutout to Tia and D. Those two are awesome ^__^  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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He was laying in the sand, the hot desert sun boiling overhead. Lights and colours seemed to blend into one another as he flopped his silver-coloured head back and forth, his hair becoming filled with grains of sand. As he lay groaning, a tingly feeling over took him suddenly. He rubbed his arm, but felt nothing. Nothing, until he opened his eyes, to see odd-looking, black spiders eating away at his flesh.  
  
They were everywhere; on his arms, his legs, forehead, shoulder, stomach, feet, anywhere and everywhere his skin was visible, spiders were eating his flesh up. The creatures were even eating through his shoes. He shrieked and sat up, prying each spider-like monster off, only to have another one replace its predecessor. Ryou risked a terrified glance at the sand, to find out that the spiders were coming from the very sand on which he sat. A spider-monster bit straight through his arm and through the bone, a bloody fang emerging on the other side of his limb. Ryou paled and tried to rip it out of his arm, to no avail as the monster began eating his muscles. More spiders began peircing through his feet and legs, draining him of precious, life-giving blood. He was being eaten alive by mutant spiders!  
  
"BAKURA! BAKURA HELP ME!" His scream echoed throughout the desert, and seemed to even split through the deadly silence of outer space. Chocolate brown orbs widened in pure terror as the sand slowly turned into the monsters which were attacking him. He let out a blood-curlding scream as what appeared to be an arm of black, flesh-eating monsters rose from the black masses, and encircled his waist, drawing him down into the depths of inky pain and dismembering darkness...  
  
.  
  
"Ryou! Damnit Ryou, wake up! Snap out of it!" Bakura shouted as he wrapped his arm around Ryou's waist and pulled him close against his chest. The smaller boy squirmed and cried to be let go, tears streaming down his face. Bakura caught a glance of Ryou's eyes - they looked forlorn and glazed over. Ryou was hallucinating.  
  
"BAKURA! MAKE IT LET GO!" Ryou pried at Bakura's arm, but the older boy's firm grip was too strong for him.  
  
The Egyptian sighed and tightened his arms around the shaking form of the other. He tried calming Ryou down by rubbing his back gently, but that proved itself futile and ineffective when Ryou would thrash about and cry terrified tears and aim misguided punches into the air. "Ryou, Ryou, it's allright... I'm the one holding you. Me, Bakura."  
  
When Bakura found all his attempts at talking Ryou back into reality were useless, he panicked mildly and began racking his brain for any secondary options he may or may not have thought of before. Without thinking, Bakura leaned forward and pressed his lips forcefully against Ryou's candy-like tiers, hoping deep down in his heart that nothing too serious was happening to Ryou. The kiss left Bakura in a somewhat dazed state for a few moments, until he remembered the situation at hand, and snapped out of it.  
  
.  
  
Suddenly, Ryou opened his eyes and the spiders started melting away, along with the immense darkness that had once surrounded him. A warm, content feeling settled inside him as, in amazement, his skin and muscles started rebuilding themselves. Rays of light from an invisible sun poured down upon him, glistening a pleasing colour.  
  
.  
  
From Bakura's point of view, Ryou's eyes were shut tight, but the boy's arms had stopped attacking and his legs had stopped kicking. Bakura held Ryou close, anxiously waiting to see what would happen when Ryou's eyes opened. A light groan escaped the slightly parted lips of the British youth, and Bakura looked down into clear, vivid eyes. "Ryou? Are you alright?"  
  
Wordlessly, Ryou buried his face into Bakura's neck, and sobbed. He clung to Bakura's waist and sat in his lap for a long time, probably longer than he should have, but at that point in time, he didn't really care. "They were eating away at me..." he whispered, shaking visibly at the horrible memory.  
  
Bakura blinked. "Who was?"  
  
"Those... spider things... Horrible monsters... They were all around me, eating the flesh right off my bones." Ryou took a moment to glance up at Bakura, who had an expression halfway between curiosity and worry written all over his face. "And then... The sand... it got taken over by those spider monsters, until I was completely surrounded by them..." He glanced up at Bakura and clunb to the fabric of the prison escapee's shirt. "And they dragged me down, Bakura... They dragged me down..."  
  
Bakura was plain shocked at how intimidating Ryou's hallucination sounded. He had never been too fond of the eight-legged beasts, but having them eat away at living flesh... The thought itself sent a shiver down his spine. He held Ryou's head to his shoulder. "It was a hallucination. You're probably extremely dehydrated." Bakura said slowly as Ryou looked around in mild confusion.  
  
"What time is it?"  
  
Checking his watch, Bakura replied, "Half past one in the afternoon. I was up at dawn, but you were still asleep... And you looked so peaceful, I decided it would be alright if we postponed travelling anymore for a little bit. But then you started screaming, and... Well, you know the rest."  
  
Ryou nodded. "Are you sure it wasn't real?" He asked, trying to gulp down the slight fear in his heart.  
  
"I'm sure." Bakura said as Ryou nodded. The gentler boy turned his lips up into a smile; he felt secure around Bakura.  
  
//  
  
The slender young woman took a number of deep breaths to calm herself down, shakily extending her paled hand to grasp the cordless telephone. She had been out searching for Ryou all night and all morning, and still she had found nothing. Her father had suggested calling the police once his daughter had regained most of her senses. Gulping, she dialed 9-1-1 as the panic began to return to her.  
  
Finally, a confident yet considerate male voice answered the phone. "Hello, 9-1-1."  
  
Ms. Bakura instantly broke down and began sobbing to the man on the other end of the phone about how Ryou had gone missing. Between her choked sobs and panicked breaths, she managed to tell the man what Ryou looked like, his age, and approximately when he had gone missing. When she had sniffed back her tears and calmed down again, the man transferred her to the police station nearest her location.  
  
.  
  
"Officer Mutou speaking." Came a stern voice through the phone wire. The Cheif of Police, Yami Mutou, sat at his desk with a somewhat bored expression on his face, and in his deep crimson eyes. The only calls that had come in today were measly little crimes that required no real intervention by the police: A summer-school fight that hadn't gone past insults, a couple of quarters being stolen... It seemed to Yami that society's logic and intelligence was dwindling at an alarming rate. His attention was brought back to reality when a panicked female voice began speaking through held back sobs.  
  
"Sir, please, you've got to help me!" Ms. Bakura nearly shouted into the phone, careful not to be too loud while her parents comforted eachother upstairs. "Officer, my son went missing last night, we're in the outskirts of town, a mile or so away from the desert. My son is no where in sight--"  
  
Yami instantly became interested in this case; finally, something worthy of his time. "Ma'am, the 9-1-1 dispatchman told me your case. We're sending a crew of three of our finest policeman out to look for your son. You said he has whiteish hair and brown eyes, right?"  
  
"Yessir."  
  
Yami sighed. "Alright, I'll tell them to be careful; there's a prison escapee who looks similar to your son from the descriptions you gave."  
  
Ms. Bakura's breath caught in her throat. "What?! You mean there's a chance my Ryou could interact with a prisoner?!"  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Yami said carefully as he listened for any changes in the woman's breathing, "But the desert is so large that I'm sure they're not even within a 100-mile radius of one another." Yami didn't believe himself, though. Chances were the two had run into one another, and because it would have been very hard for one person to survive in the desert alone, they would have started travelling together.  
  
"I hope so, officer." Ms. Bakura sighed, her voice slightly calmer than it had been before. "Thank you."  
  
"Not a problem." Yami replied as he hung the phone up.  
  
.  
  
A tall, thin, brown haired man stood silently beside a more relaxed looking blonde with deep amber eyes. The blonde leaned into the other very slightly as they remained glued to their spots. Beside the two was a third boy, whose sharp hair stood up straight and ended in a point on his head. He stood slightly apart from the others, and gave anyone who saw him the impression that he had a tendency to fade into the background.  
  
"Seto Kaiba."  
  
The first of the three stepped forward, his lean and well-muscled figure catching the light coming in through the window of the police station. One glance at his face made it obvious that he was a very determined man, the kind who never allowed failure to be a possibility. His peircing blue eyes were watching Yami in curiosity of what kind of case could be so serious as to involve all three of them.  
  
"Joseph Wheeler."  
  
The blonde stepped forward, his hands shoved lazily into his pockets. He hardly looked the type to be a police officer. In fact, he looked more like a goofy high school student who wanted nothing more than recess all day long. But that youthful and energetic attitude was what made him an expert at under-cover operations. Not only that, but it was good to have him in the station for a good laugh when the atmosphere was tense.  
  
"Tristan Taylor," Yami said, calling out the name of the third, quiet boy.  
  
Stepping out from his spot in the shadows, the other brown-haired boy took his spot beside the blonde. The collars of his beige trench-coat raised to slightly past his ears as he stood with his eyebrows furrowed in deep thinking. His reserved nature gave him all he needed to find out information that would otherwise be unattainable when solving cases. In truth, he was a very nice person to get to know.  
  
"You three are our most skilled officers." Yami started as he glanced at each of them individually, his eyes lingering on Seto and Joseph, or, as he liked to be called, Joey. He had noticed that the two had become... quite friendly with eachother, whereas at first they hadn't been able to be in the same room without an explosive argument. He had to smile inwardly at that. Clearing his throat, Yami returned to the topic at hand. "And I need you three to aid a Ms. Bakura in finding her missing son. He's about 5'6", whiteish hair, brown eyes. If you ask me, it sounds like he bears a striking resemblance to that prison escapee."  
  
The three of them nodded curtly.  
  
"And... Where exactly are we ta find this kid?" Joey asked, arching a thin golden eyebrow.  
  
"Glad you asked." Yami said, "The desert. That's where his mother thinks he might have gone."  
  
Seto looked up from his crossed arms, his gaze serious. "Isn't that also where the escaped prisoner is rumoured to have gone?"  
  
Yami nodded.  
  
"We'll have to get a move on as soon as we can, then. They probably met up by now, and are travelling together... If this boy of hers is lucky." Seto said, the strict look in his eyes unwavering. Joey and Tristan nodded.  
  
"Yeah, let's get goin'." Joey said as he unconciously brushed his arm against Seto's.  
  
//  
  
"Bakura?" Ryou asked suddenly. The two had resumed their trek across the desert. Bakura still hadn't told Ryou precisely where they were headed for.  
  
The slightly taller boy grunted in response; something Ryou had gotten used to. "Nn?"  
  
Ryou glanced around for a moment. "Do you think my mom might'a called the cops or something 'cause I ran off without leaving any notes or any anythings?"  
  
Bakura shrugged. "Most likely. In that case, we'll have to be extra careful not to stay in one place for too long, until we reach where we're going."  
  
"Where /are/ we going?"  
  
Silence was Ryou's answer as Bakura shrugged a second time. Finally, the Egyptian spoke. "Somewhere they'll never find us."  
  
Ryou blinked momentarily, trying to understand exactly what Bakura had meant. He too shrugged and let himself drift into silence as he passed by the rotting corpse of a desert rabbit. Maggots had infested its corpse. Ryou made a face of slight disgust before turning his gaze away from the rabbit and infront of him.  
  
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Wow. This chapter's turned out to be the longest one yet. I had a bit of a block writing the scene with his mother, but once I got passed that, the chapter took off and began running smoothly again. Anyways, please R/R!  
  
_**The MINIMUM has been UPGRADED from -45- to -60- before I UPDATE**_  
  
Ja!  
  
~Shori Musei~ 


	6. Captured

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Dislcaimer: *Checks her calender* Nope, doesn't look like I'll be owning YGO any time this year, folks.  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, maybe some side Marik/Malik, hinted Seto/Joey in this and possibly other chapter(s).  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), death, angst, some Bakura OOC maybe. Once again, a thanks goes out to D.  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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After what seemed like an eternity, Bakura finally stopped walking, although it was really more of a limp. He fought to keep his face expressionless as pain seared throughout the bloody wound on his leg, and was somewhat sucsessful, although he couldn't keep himself from furrowing his eyebrows and wincing every time he would put too much pressure on his leg.  
  
Ryou almost walked into Bakura, since he had fixed his gaze on the sandy ground beneath him. Fortunately, he looked up just in time to see that Bakura had stopped walking. He took a step forward, so that he was standing beside Bakura, and blinked, looking around. "Why'd you stop? Is it because of your leg?"  
  
"No." Bakura replied instantly, his voice barely above a raspy whisper. He motioned with his hand for Ryou to lower the tone in his voice as he knelt down, biting down on his tongue to keep back a cry of pain at his wound. "What, or should I say who, I'm looking for should be nearby..." He peered inside a small cave made out of age-old rocks.  
  
Just as the side of his face became visible to the person inside the cave, a mocha hand extended, grabbed his collar, and pulled the tomb robber inside, covering his mouth before any sounds could be made. From the outside of the cave, he could hear Ryou shouting out his name in fear.  
  
Bakura froze as he was suddenly yanked inside the cave and a hand was clamped over his mouth. He hardly dared to breathe, just in case he had been wrong in his assumptions that this was the correct cave. Muscles tense, he fought back the urge to bite his captor's hand until he was set free. He tried to gain Ryou's attention with his eyes, although he knew that nine chances out of ten, it would not work. Adrenaline was coursing through his veins as he remained stiff.  
  
.  
  
"Damn, Bakura. I thought you'd know it was me."  
  
Bakura insantly went lax and squirmed out of the other's arms. He turned around and glared. "You didn't have to startle me like that, Marik." Rolling his eyes, he shifted his gaze to the outside, and noticed that it was distinctly cooler inside the cave. "You got room for one more person?"  
  
A second form stepped out of the darkness. "You brought someone with you, 'Kura? Why in hell'd you do that? I thought you flew solo?" The speaker's golden arm bands glistened in the faint sunlight filtering through.  
  
"Malik and Marik... So you came here together." Bakura noted, nodding slightly. "Yes, I did bring someone along. Again, do you have room for one more person in this cave of yours?"  
  
Marik nodded. "Barely. Is this kid small?"  
  
Bakura thought for a moment, "Yeah."  
  
"Good." Malik said, signifying to Bakura that it was okay to go outside and tell Ryou to come in.  
  
.  
  
"Ryou?" Bakura stepped out from inside the cave, and looked around, squinting as his vision readjusted to the sunlight. He found the lithe British youth scouting the area; he figured Ryou was trying to find a safe viewpoint for peering inside the stone structure. "Ryou! Get down here!" He ordered, catching Ryou's eye.  
  
"Bakura! What happened?" Ryou asked as he hopped down a couple boulders, Bakura's tote slung over his shoulder. "I saw you get dragged in, and--"  
  
Bakura hushed him by placing one finger on Ryou's pale pink lips. "Listen. This is where we're going," he motioned behind him with his thumb. "I'll introduce you to the people inside. Come on."  
  
Ryou hesitantly nodded, then followed Bakura inside, relishing the refreshing shade.  
  
.  
  
"The hell? Bakura, are you playing a trick on us? How come you never told us you had a twin brother?" Marik asked skeptically while he glanced Ryou over. Ryou smiled slightly at Marik, sitting down beside Bakura. Subconsiously, he leaned into his look-a-like, trying to avoid the steady gaze coming from the beach-blonde Egyptian.  
  
Bakura rolled his eyes a second time, "He's not my brother. Yes, he does look like me, but I'm not related to him. You look like Malik, but he's not your brother." He drug his shoulderbag to his side and twisted his hand into the strap.  
  
Marik shrugged. "He could sure pass for you. Where'd ya find him?"  
  
Ryou remained silent. Bakura's friends didn't seem to like him that much. Perhaps he had been wrong in tagging along with Bakura. If he hadn't, he could be enjoying a satisfying lunch right about now, and he could have a roof over his head when he went to sleep, instead of being vulnerable to anything nature decided to send his way. When he had first asked Bakura to let him come with, he hadn't expected the older boy to be as kind as he had been. The first night Ryou had fallen asleep in Bakura's arms was pleasant, but he still couldn't help but wonder if he had done the right thing. He glanced up as he felt eyes staring at him.  
  
"Marik, lay off." Bakura snapped as he noticed a depressed air building around Ryou. "You speak as if he's not even present."  
  
A suspicious glare was then sent Bakura's way from the two blondes. "What happened to you that made you care about someone besides yourself, Bakura?" Malik asked, eyebrow arched in mischevious curiousity. "Or is the infamous Bakura finally lightening up?"  
  
Bakura pinned Malik with a momentary glare as a long, drawn out silence settled itself amongst the four. Marik and Malik looked at eachother and grinned, while Ryou blinked, and Bakura avoided eye-contact with anyone or anything except for the stone wall, a light blush rising in his cheeks.  
  
.  
  
As Bakura engaged himself in a severely intense staring contest, Ryou lifted his head from the silver-haired Egyptian's shoulder and cast a worried gaze at the wound on Bakura's leg. The cut seemed to be infected, and though it had stopped bleeding for the most part, gnarled scabs had formed and some of the skin was starting to die. "Bakura, you can't let your leg stay like that." Ryou stated, shattering the silence. He stood, reluctantly leaving the safety of Bakura's side. "I'll be right back," he dug into his backpack and brought out a small, empty Altoids' can and pocketed it, dashing outside into the sunlight before anyone could stop him.  
  
"Ryou...!" Bakura exclaimed, motioning to get up. His actions were halted by Marik's firm grip on his shoulder.  
  
It was too late; Ryou had set off at a running pace to wherever it was he needed to go, and there was no chance of catching up to him by now.  
  
.  
  
Ryou ran until he found the rotted desert rabbit corpse, thankfully the maggots were still eating at the dead flesh of the poor creature. He knelt down and searched the ground for something he could use in the transportation of the slimy yellow fungus-like creatures, thankful when he found what appeared to be an old, dried up stick of some kind. He didn't want to have to actually touch the maggots. He quickly set to work on scooping them into the tin. A mental note was made to throw the tin out as soon as possible as he finished collecting the maggots. Standing, he started back to the cave, unaware of the cloaked figure hiding behind a rock some twenty feet from where he was.  
  
.  
  
Bakura glared to the outside world from his restrained spot in the cave. Marik still had his arm in a death-grip, and although his arm was starting to numb slightly, he payed it no attention. "Why is he not back yet?!"  
  
"Why are you so worried?" Malik questioned, lavender eyes glinting with mischeif in the reddish orange light from the setting sun.  
  
"Shut up, the both of you." Interrupted an annoyed Marik. Slight jealousy was present in his gaze; he didn't like not having Malik's attention.  
  
Malik and Bakura quieted down in their endless argument. "Bakura, if he's not back in a minute, we can go looking for him, okay?" Malik proposed upon seeing worry clearly written all over Bakura's sharp mahogony orbs.  
  
Glaring, Bakura nodded. "Alright..."  
  
.  
  
Ryou walked at a brisk pace, he had the slight feeling that someone was following him. Shoving the inch-long tin of maggots into his pocket, he didn't dare to look back as he fought against his fear to continue walking, as if he always went down paths at a semi-fast pace. Just to prove to himself that there was nothing to worry about, he stopped walking.  
  
The footsteps behind him stopped.  
  
He started walking again.  
  
The footsteps followed.  
  
Gulping, he slowed down, hoping it was just his imagination.  
  
The footsteps did not slow down.  
  
He broke into a panicked run.  
  
The footsteps sped up until they, too, were running.  
  
His energy failed him, and he stopped running.  
  
The footsteps stopped running as well.  
  
Ryou felt a presence standing behind him, felt eyes boring into the back of his head, hands hovering just above his arms, and a knee right behind his own, waiting to knock him to the floor. As much as he hated to ask Bakura for help another time, in this instance he felt that there was more at risk than his ankle. He opened his mouth to shout...  
  
A hand slapped his mouth shut as a strong arm grabbed him round the waist. Eyes wide with fear, Ryou did the first thing his instincts told him to: He bit the hand of his captor as hard as he could, and didn't stop until he felt the coppery tang of the other's blood enter is mouth. Once he had bought himself a few seconds of time, he took a deep breath and shouted for all his worth. "BAKURA!" He struggled to get free of the man holding him as he spat out the blood. "Let me go! Stop it!" Kicking his legs around as he was lifted into the air, he managed to kick the man's knee.  
  
His mouth still hadn't been covered again, so he shouted a second time, "BAKURA!"  
  
"Listen, boy!" The man growled, throwing Ryou to the ground and whipping out a knife from somewhere inside the cloak, "If you want to live, you'll shut up! Get off the ground! I said GET OFF THE GROUND!" He held the knife out to Ryou's face, smirking as the boy, now an almost ghostly pale, shakily stood up. "Good. You can follow orders." Cloak still masking his identity, the man circled Ryou slowly, until he was behind him. Duveil, the man, kicked Ryou's back until he started walking. He pulled the cloak away from his face, revealing short, inky black hair and eyes just as dark. The knife was held just close enough to Ryou's neck to put pressure but not induce outward blood flow. "Now walk. And if I hear you calling out to this 'Bakura' of yours, you're as good as dead."  
  
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Ending Notes: Bakura will now murder me. Oh, and 'Duveil' is Dutch for 'devil'.  
  
Bakura: *Glares at Shori* WHAT do you have planned?  
  
Shori: Uhm... ^_^ I gotta go now, bye everybody! *Runs off*  
  
Bakura: ... Well, since the authoress has dissapeared, I'll update you on the review counter. She now requires 75 reviews to continue. That's... *Counts* 15 more. That's right, she did say she was uping the counter by fifteen every chapter.  
  
Shori: (From other side of world) TELL THEM TO STAY TUNED, AND THAT I LOVE THEM, AND THANKS FOR REVIEWING, AND TO PLEASE NOT MURDER ME!  
  
Bakura: ... You heard her. *Walks off and turns off light on the way out of computer room* 


	7. My Bloody Savior

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: Nope. Don't own YGO yet.  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, maybe some S/J  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), angst, death, maybe some OOC. For Tia and D. Uhm, Bakura goes ballistic/highly pissed off (if you're a Gundam Wing fan, think a very enraged Quatre on ZERO). Excessive spilling of blood.  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
WARNING! THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS RAPE! IF YOU HAVE ANY ISSUES WITH A SUBJECT SUCH AS THIS, INSTANT MESSAGE OR EMAIL ME AND I WILL TELL YOU WHAT HAPPENS IN THE REST OF THE CHAPTER. PLEASE DO NOT READ IF YOU IT BOTHERS YOU.  
  
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Ryou, too afraid to do anything else, did as he was told by the cloaked man and tried to make as little noise as possible. He didn't even breathe through his mouth, even though he needed more air in his lungs. Instead, he breathed in through his nose, trying to calm himself down. Hopefully Bakura had heard his cries for help, and even more hopefully, Bakura would have not been annoyed.  
  
When he was finally told to stop walking, he looked up, and found three other men sitting around him, each with a matching sadistic grin. He gulped, unmoving as his captor removed his cloak.  
  
Duveil pushed him to the hot, sandy ground, and kicked him around a few times, anger building in him each time Ryou refused to cry out in pain. Now proving himself to be wearing a tight grey muscle shirt and an equally tight pair of grey jeans, Duveil picked Ryou up by the collar and glared straight into teary brown eyes. "Will you cry for me? Will you bleed, will you scream, for me?" He spat in Ryou's face. Duveil's questions were more like commands as he dropped Ryou to the sand, kicking his ribs and grinning in satisfaction when he heard the tell-tale sound of breaking bone.  
  
Ryou finally couldn't hold it in anymore, and he groaned, gently holding on to the side of his body where his rib had broken. It hurt to breathe, but he knew he had to continue breathing or else he would eventually be beaten to death. He tried to will himself into unconciousness as he was once again kicked in the back. Black dots blinked infront of Ryou as Duveil landed a powerful kick landed in the nape of his neck. Pain shot throughout his body, sending a fiery, uncontrollable spasm into every single nerve in Ryou's form.  
  
Too battered and broken to fight back anymore, Ryou lay limp and almost lifeless on the sand as, once again, Duveil lifted him by the collar and shook him violently. When he allowed his head to hang down limply, Duveil's anger flared, and he backhanded the thin British youth. Ryou didn't even whimper in response as he was shaken a second time. Nor did he react at all when he was thrown face-first into the sand like an old rag doll who had long outlived its purpose. Duveil kicked the boy's ribs on the other side of his chest harshly until he heard them break as well.  
  
He was somewhere between conciousness and unconciousness when he felt his shoes being removed, followed by his socks. 'Please... stop...' Salty tears began to build behind Ryou's closed eyelids as Duveil flipped him over and unbuckled his belt. 'Bakura...' He slipped into unconciousness momentarily before he was brought back to reality when his sensitive skin was suddenly exposed to the brash sun; his pants and boxers having just been ripped off his lower body.  
  
Pain, like nothing he had felt before, nearly shred Ryou into peices when Duveil thrust himself inside him. What was left of Ryou's vision at this point faded into white nothingness. Exhausted to the point of near-death, Ryou passed out while Duveil was still inside him.  
  
.  
  
"Bakura, wait!"  
  
"Marik, shut up!" Bakura, infected wound and all, pushed the two blonde Egyptians off him and stumbled outside the cave. "I don't fucking care what you two say, if you don't want to come with me then stay here and leave me be!" He glared poisonously at the two before storming off into the desert sun, half running and half limping.  
  
He ran until he saw what looked like two seperate sets of footsteps. Upon closer observation, he saw that one pair of footsteps was chasing the other, and then there was a spot in the sand where a struggle evidently took place. His eyes narrowed as he followed the footsteps, now heading in a different direction. As he walked, he dug into his pocket and extracted a deadly sharp dagger, with old, cracking blood stains still present.  
  
.  
  
Eventually, he couldn't take it anymore, and broke into a run, although admittedly he couldn't run as fast as he would have liked to. He slowed down when he heard voices talking loudly. He knelt down and crept behind a rock, holding his dagger against his chest so that the sun would not reflect off the blade. When he saw what appeared to be an unconcious, naked boy with familiar silvery hair, rage exploded into Bakura's heart and he skulked down the rest of the rocky hill until he was behind all the laughing men. He gave a silent but heartfelt thanks to Ra for giving him the skill to sneak up on people without them noticing until it was too late.  
  
.  
  
Raising the dagger behind the man closest to him, he suddenly forced the tip of the blade through the man's throat, chucking darkly as blood gurgled onto the fiend's shirt.  
  
"Don't you *ever* touch my Ryou again." He hissed, his voice dripping with pure venom. Bakura wasn't even close to done as he reared on the second man, slicing across the tanned forehead before a reaction could be made. Leaving the second man, Kwaad, to fend for his bleeding self after punching the imbosile's neck, Bakura turned on the third of the four, and plunged the knife through the man's large stomach. Blood poured onto his arm and seeped into the fabric of his shirt as he retracted the dagger and glared angrily around for the fourth and final man, the one who had done the most damange to his Ryou.  
  
"And you! You bastard, you're going to regret what you did to him!" Bakura spat, charging at the man, who, in his mind, was foolishly remaining perfectly still. Dagger aimed high, he swung the blade mightily at Duveil, who countered Bakura's attack with a powerful punch right to the Egyptian's stomach. Bakura froze, and bit his tongue. He concentrated, and the pain subsided. "You think you can defeat me that easily, you pig!" A purely satanic and insane grin crossed Bakura's face as he twisted around and pushed the dagger into Duveil's stomach. He was thrown back when a punch struck his jaw, and for a moment Bakura could only glare as pain seared throughout the right side of his face.  
  
Quickly, he stood back up and kicked Duveil off his feet and removed his dagger as the taller man fell to the sand. "I swear by the sands of Egypt, I will never let you harm him or anyone else again!" The maniacle grin served to match the look of uncontrolled insanity in Bakura's wild brown eyes. Duveil held his breath, he had never seen such anger, nor had he seen the animalistic fury present in those treacherous orbs before. He had a feeling he wasn't going to make it out of this alive.  
  
Bakura's breathing was slightly ragged, and his body was a little tired from his sudden fight, but the sadistic grin on his lips, the dark, almost inaudible chuckles emitting from inside those lips, the look of insanity beyond all reason, and the psychotic way Bakura's chuckles turned into laughs proved it true that he was not about to give up. Bakura's grin only widened as he suddenly lifted his head and threw the dagger at the human pig with such raw power that it seemed too strong to come from such a thin body.  
  
.  
  
Off to the side, Ryou's dark unawareness was brought back to reality by the sounds of the fight. He groaned, his body hurt everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Lifting his head off the hot sand, he saw Bakura standing over the corpse of who he recognized to be the man who had harmed him in more ways than one. From Ryou's viewpoint, Bakura laughed maniacally and removed a bloodied dagger from the Duveil's stomach, only to throw it a second time at the bruised jaw.  
  
"And THAT'S for kidnapping him! THIS is for kicking him!" Bakura kicked the dead man's body with all his strength, "THIS is for punching him!" He kicked Duveil's lifeless form in the head, "And, THIS," Bakura said, pulling his dagger out of Duveil's mangled jaw with a sudden, quick movement, "is for everything else you did, and merely existing!" A sharp and insane cackle escaped Bakura's lips as he stood above Deveil's neck, and brought the dagger crashing down, piercing throught the skin until he felt the last piece of skin break and his dagger hit the desert sand.  
  
Horrified, Ryou allowed a single tear to slide down his cheek. He didn't want to go near Bakura right now, not after what he had just seen...  
  
.  
  
Bakura fell to his knees, his fist still clenched around the handle of his blade in an iron grip. Rage still burned inside him, he still wanted his revenge. His body disagreed with him, however, seeing as when he went to lift the dagger to stab Duveil another time, his arm shook and he let it drop to his side. His heartbeat was as wild as his emotions were, he had to take a lot of deep breaths before he could calm himself down. He sighed, slumping his shoulders as he regained control of himself. Just now, in the heat of battle, he had no control over what he did; all he knew was what he was pissed off and wanted to take it out on the first person to defy his anger in any way whatsoever. But now that he had fully come to his senses, he groaned, slapping his bloodied hand to his forehead and cursing in Egyptian. If the police ever caught him now... Bakura shook his head. He didn't want his thoughts to go in that direction.  
  
His head snapped up when he heard a soft cry from somewhere behind him. He turned around instantly, forgetting to drop his dagger in the process. Ryou had gotten his boxers and shirt back on some time during the fight, Bakura supposed, for the boy was no longer naked. Bakura returned his dagger to his pocket and walked carefully over to Ryou. "Ryou?"  
  
"Please... please don't come near me, s-sir..." Ryou whimpered, still afraid of the sixteen-year-old Egyptian. "Please..."  
  
Bakura's eyes flashed with deep sorrow for a moment, before his usual blank mask replaced itself. "What are you talking about? I killed him, he... he's dead." He blinked, realizing the distinct difference in how he was addressed. "...Sir?"  
  
Ryou remained silent and turned away from Bakura. He wanted desperately to rewind time and stop himself from seeing Bakura kill the man; being held in Bakura's arms always gave him a feeling of safety, but now that he had seen those same arms used for manslaughter, Ryou didn't know what to think.  
  
"Ryou," Bakura said softly, hesitantly reaching out and resting his hand on Ryou's shoulder. He had never truly felt the kind of hurt he was feeling now - a deep, inexpressible wound in his heart that burned to the point of driving him to tears. "Ryou," he choked out, closing his eyes to keep back the tears he had a feeling were to come, "Please. I'm... I'm sorry. I never should have let you come on this... this... whatever you want to call it, Trip to Hell for all I know, with me. I should have made you stay with your family. You wouldn't have to be so hungry, you wouldn't have to sleep with no roof over your head, you wouldn't have to have gone through what you just did, and you wouldn't have to know me. I'm sorry. I can find a way to get you back with your family, if you want me to. I can understand... if you want to go home right now, where you belong, instead of travelling the desert with me and Marik and Malik." The words hurt Bakura as he spoke, but he knew he had to say them. During his heartful speach, he still hadn't taken his hand off Ryou's shoulder.  
  
Twin tears splashed down Ryou's cheeks. He leaned his head towards the warmth of Bakura's hand, but said nothing.  
  
"Ryou," Bakura pleaded, "Please. Say something. Anything. Even if you tell me that you hate me, just please, say anything..."  
  
More tears spilled out of Ryou's deep brown eyes as he reached up with his left arm, careful to avoid shifting his aching ribs too much, and tenderly grasped Bakura's fingers with his own. Still, he didn't speak.  
  
Bakura scooted closer to Ryou, as if to embrace him. But, when he saw how the smaller boy recoiled slightly, he decided against touching any other part of Ryou's body other than his shoulder. He didn't remove his hand. "Ryou, can you stand?"  
  
Silently, Ryou shook his head, lacing his fingers with Bakura's. He lowered his left arm to his side, brining Bakura's hand along with his own. With both his hands, Ryou held Bakura's hand as he lifted the older boy's hand to his lips. Ryou placed a gentle kiss on each of the pale fingers entertwined with his own.  
  
"Do you want me to carry you back to Marik and Malik?" Bakura asked softly as Ryou still hadn't let go of his hand.  
  
Ryou paused for a long moment. Dare he? `Bakura... please understand... I'm afraid... Too afraid to even talk...` He nodded, biting his tongue. He wasn't /as/ afraid of Bakura has he had been a few minutes ago, although he had decided that he hated Bakura's dagger. Even though he knew very well the Egyptian had been defending him, it still scared him that Bakura would go so far as to behead a person in a quest for revenge.  
  
Bakura gently lifted Ryou into his arms, careful to avoid the obviously broken ribs and many bruises the boy had received. He walked slowly, checking on the precious package in his arms every so often until he saw the glorious salvation of Marik and Malik's desert cave.  
  
.  
  
"Bakura! Where the hell have you been, do you have any idea how long-- What the-?! Is he alright?!" Malik started, yelling at Bakura in the beginning. His yelling stopped, however, upon seeing the barely concious Ryou in the tomb robber's arms, one pale hand laid softly across his abdomen.  
  
The older of the two near-albinos glared, although is heart wasn't in it. "No, he is not 'alright'. You should have let me go with him, Marik! Do you know what happened to him!" Bakura turned his glare on Marik, who arched a thin blonde eyebrow.  
  
When he was answered with silence, Bakura continued on in his rant. "A band of... whatever they are kidnapped him! And you know what their poor excuse for a human leader did?! Well! Do you?!" He wasn't directing his anger at Marik inparticular, and both of the darker-skinned Egyptians knew that Bakura needed to let off some steam. "He raped him! He fucking raped him! I found Ryou half naked in the sands with broken ribs and enough bruises to last a lifetime!"  
  
Bakura's tone softened when he realized he had been clutching Ryou's form to him a little too tightly. "How anyone could do something like that to him..." He had positioned himself so that he was sitting against the wall of the cave, and Ryou was sleeping in his lap, much like the first night they had spent together.  
  
"Some people deserve to have their heads cut off." Malik spat; he hated people like the one Bakura had mentioned.  
  
"That's what I did."  
  
Marik looked up, "You cut his head off?"  
  
A single nod from Bakura was the answer. "Killed them all. All four of them." A light smirk played across his face. "I hope they go to hell."  
  
"They will." Marik said, and Malik nodded. Bakura only stared at the sand beneath his sneakers, lost in thought.  
  
`Please be okay...`  
  
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Shori: *Hiding*  
  
Bakura: GET. OUT. HERE. NOW!  
  
Shori: o__o Bakura, remember that if you kill me, there won't be any more chapters.  
  
Bakura: HOW DARE YOU DO THAT TO RYOU!  
  
Shori: I know, I know, I feel horrible for it! *Looks at reviewers* Uhm, before Bakura kills me, please take notice that I've updated the review counter to 90... Which is 15 more than before! ^_^  
  
Bakura: Stop rhyming...  
  
Shori: -_-; It was not intentional... 


	8. A Tangled Web

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: o_o You mean I don't own YGO? Aww. *Pouts*  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, maybe some Seto/Joey  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), angst, death, maybe some OOC. Hi to D, Tia, and Avery ^_^. Yet another fight scene.  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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Once Bakura had fallen asleep with Ryou in his arms, Marik and Malik decided to buy the quartet some time in thier desert home. Marik grabbed a blanket from his backpack and brought it with them as they exited the cave, the moonlight glimmering above them. They quickly set to work erasing all of Bakura's footsteps locatable that might lead any and all police officers to the cave. Though they erased most of the footprints, they remained near the cave, in case something were to happen and they needed to know.  
  
They worked efficiently and quietly, occasionally breaking the silence to share an idea with the other. Malik suggested the duo leave a confusing path in the sands. Marik was the one to actually carry out the task, as he made a trail of footsteps leading directly away from the cave. Then, he turned around and walked back to the others with Malik by his side, erasing his second set of footsteps in the process. When he climbed back inside the dimly lit safety of the cave, he couldn't help but sigh. Bakura's eyes were shut, and his breathing was soft, but Marik could tell he wasn't asleep anymore.  
  
"I'm back." The tall Egyptian said to no one inparticular.  
  
Bakura looked up from his shoes, "So I see."  
  
Ryou shifted in his sleep, burrying his head into Bakura's shoulder. Malik watched the youngest of the four with a compassionate gaze. To say he felt sorry for Ryou was the understatement of his entire life.  
  
Sighing, Malik allowed the silence to take over once again as he slid to the dusty ground beside Marik, resting his head on the other's shoulder.  
  
.  
  
The blonde police officer sighed out of pure boredom and drummed his fingers lazily on his denim-clad knee. He had been driving through the desert with Seto and Tristan for what seemed to him like hours, with no success or leads at all. Yawning, he considered attempting sleep, but he knew it wouldn't look too good for his record at the police station if he were to fall asleep on the job. He also knew he couldn't start blasting hard core rock music either, as that was the only thing which would prevent him from sleeping, because it would draw attention to the trio. Sometimes, Joey hated his job.  
  
Seto kept his eyes sharply aware for anything even mildly out of the ordinary as he turned the desert jeep towards a rock formation off in the distance. He pulled the vehicle to a stop when a furry brown something caught his eye. From his spot in the drivers' seat, he glared down dissaprovingly at the dead, mangled rabbit corpse lying pitifully on the sand. A couple maggots were eating what was left of the dead skin.  
  
"Disgusting." Seto grunted, catching the attention of Tristan and Joey.  
  
Tristan glanced at Seto, "What?"  
  
"'Dat." Joey answered for the stoic blue-eyed brunette. He pointed a tanned finger at the dead animal.  
  
"I feel kind of bad for it. I know I wouldn't like to be eaten once I died." Tristan muttered in response, a flash of sympathy crossing his hazel eyes.  
  
Seto, the oldest of the three by a year and two months, unbuckled his seat belt and motioned to put the jeep in 'park' when a hand placed itself on his. He looked up into a smiling pair of deep amber eyes encased by gently hanging golden tresses. A ghost of a small smile crossed Seto's naturally thin lips in response. Joey's smile was entrancing and warm as he released Seto's hand, forever engraving the past few seconds into his memory, Seto doing the same.  
  
.  
  
The three officers exited the car, and instantly began scanning the area for anything else one wouldn't find while walking through a mostly barren desert. Joey and Tristan followed slightly behind Seto, since he had about six month's more experience than them, although all of them were skilled enough to catch even the most cunning and unreachable of criminals.  
  
Seto stopped walking without notice, and held his hand out to his side a fraction of an inch, signaling to the other two that he found something that could be of use. He knelt down in the sand. careful not to touch any of the fading footprints. As Bakura had seen earlier, one set of footsteps seemed to be chasing the other, and there was an obvious point at which a struggle took place. Taking a look around the area, Seto saw a third, different, set of footprints, but this third set looked as if it came from a seperate direction. He gazed off into the distance; the third set dissapeared a ways' off. It didn't make sense in Seto's logical mind: People didn't just appear out of nowhere and walk somewhere in sands without leaving traces of some kind.  
  
The slightly older set of prints turned and went over a sand dune, to a pit with what seemed to be an extinguished fire pit in the center of a cleverly done circle of small, moveable rocks. "You two stay here. I'll be right back." Seto said, as he followed to two sets of prints down to the pit. Signs of another fight were present at first, and he saw strange looking lumps, half covered in sand, protruding from the sand.  
  
He jumped down the last few feet of the dune. His eyes widened considerably at the sight before him. Four dead bodies lay strewn about like dolls. One of the four had an inch-wide wound in his neck; Seto cringed at being able to see right through the bloodied mess of skin to the desert on the other side. Another corpse had a deep slash across the forehead, and a crippling black-and-purple bruise to the neck. The third body Seto saw had a vicious cut in the stomach. Whoever had killed these three men obviously showed no mercy, judging by the various degress of mutilation. But what made Seto blanch was the fourth, decapitated body lying a few feet apart from the others.  
  
Not only was this man's stomach punctured in at least three places, but the right side of his face was torn apart to the bone, with a thin, curving cut peircing through paled flesh, dead muscle, and even the bone itself. Huge bruises were present on the corpse's back and head, which, Seto noticed with a cringe, was completely severed from the body. Blood was still oozing slowly and painfully from the cut artery, dripping into the sands and tinting the golden specks a sickening brown. Seto stood slowly, casting his ice-cold gaze at the destroyed body before him. A quick glance around the pit revealed there to be something else that caught Seto's eye.  
  
A pair of blue Crosstrekker's sneakers, two slightly bloody socks, and an even bloodier pair of pants lay disguarded on the side of the decapitated man's body. Seto narrowed his eyes. Something very strange had to have happened for a scene so purely inhuman and twisted to even exist. He took another look around the area, then started back to meet up with Joey and Tristan. He had a lot to tell them.  
  
.  
  
When Seto had finally climbed back up the sand dune, Joey had just hung up his cell phone. Seto gave the blonde a curious glare, with no harm intended. Joey pocketed his cell phone and turned to Seto.  
  
"I just called Yami."  
  
"And?" Seto arched a thin brown eyebrow.  
  
Tristan stepped forward to Joey's side, "He said to wait until they send out a team of homicide investigators."  
  
The blonde nodded. "Yeah."  
  
"Figures he'd tell us to wait." Seto grumbled, his gaze lingering on Joey's endlessly deep and mystefying golden orbs. He reluctantly removed his gaze, and turned in the opposite direction.  
  
"Seto, where ya goin'?! Yami said ta stay here!" Joey exclaimed, silently hoping he could get another chance to touch the tall brunette's hand.  
  
Seto shrugged. "Wherever. I should be back by the time those investigators arrive." He said, walking off.  
  
Joey sighed, and slumped his shoulders, leaning against the cool metal of the jeep, his eyelids lightly closed over his eyes.  
  
"You like him." Tristan grinned, breaking the silence.  
  
One amber eye peeked open and peered at Tristan. Joey stared at his innocently smiling friend, an unreadable expression on his face. It wasn't of anger. It was more of a mix between shocked and startled, as Joey closed his eye again and began the long wait for the homicide investigators to arrive.  
  
Tristan chuckled to himself.  
  
.  
  
Seto wandered around the general area for a while, until he found yet another set of footsteps. The mystery with all the different tracks was really starting to bother him. How could anyone just appear in one spot, with no tracks leading up to where the footsteps began, take about ten steps, and then just dissapear? He followed the footprints yet again, and glanced around suspiciously. He spotted what looked like a reasonably inhabitable cave, and began walking towards it.  
  
"I wouldn't go there if I were you." A dark, steady, confident voice said from behind Seto. The police officer spun on his heel, aiming the barrel of a gun at the speaker.  
  
A tall, shadowed teen with spiky, pale hair and livid dark eyes stood firmly with arms crossed. He glared straight into Seto's eyes. With a single, fluid motion, he had knocked the gun out of Seto's hand, and hit him square in the jaw. Seto growled in response, and aimed a powerful punch back at his attacker, only to find him gone. His vision suddenly blackened as something heavy and metal hit the back of his head. He fell to the ground, having been knocked out from the impact of the assault.  
  
"I warned you. But now you and your friends are going to be looking for us." He sneered, hurrying back to the others.  
  
.  
  
Marik reentered the cave, where Malik and Bakura were standing. Marik and helped Bakura get Ryou onto his back, since they were going to have to leave the area immediately, now that police were on to them. Malik had Ryou's backpack on his shoulders. They set off into the desert, Bakura trailing slightly behind Marik and Malik due to the half-asleep boy he was carrying.  
  
Bakura felt so horrible for bringing Ryou into his tangled web of misfortunes. He knew neither of them had eaten a real meal for days, although occassionally they would stop and take a bite out of a cactus without a lot of thorns. And he knew how hard it must have been for Ryou to adjust to living a nomad's life, travelling aimlessly in the desert for however long, without a roof over his head and without a place to call home. Bakura had hoped Marik and Malik's hidden desert cave would have served as a temporary place to live, but of course, nothing ever seemed to go Bakura's way nowadays. He sighed as he stepped over a couple small rocks.  
  
.  
  
After what seemed like ages, he was told he could stop walking, a relief since his leg wound was smarting and causing him a lot of pain. They had come to rest underneath what Bakura thought of as a large, stone canopy of sorts. He sat down gingerly once Malik had taken temporary hold of Ryou, making sure not to put too much pressure on his leg. Once he was sitting down securely, he took Ryou into his arms and held tim tight. He would never let him leave his sight again.  
  
Marik and Malik had gone off shortly afterwards to scout around the area, in case they needed to find any quick escape routes. Bakura took advantage of their absence and gently cuddled Ryou in his arms. He wasn't quite sure if he was in love with his kind-hearted look-a-like, but he definetly felt an attatchment of some sort. Hatred still burned inside him at the mere thought of what Duveil did to his Ryou as he drew circles on Ryou's hand with his thumb. Ryou's skin was young and soft.  
  
The dried blood on Bakura's sleeve was starting to bother him, but he couldn't reach into his pocket and extract his dagger to cut off his sleeve right now. Ryou would probably never trust him again if he even so much as metioned the blade which had killed so brutally. Gently, Bakura kissed Ryou's forehead, cupping the smaller boy's face with a tender hand. Ryou's eyes snapped open as Bakura's lips left his forehead.  
  
"You're awake." Bakura said, the corners of his lips turning up into a small smile. "You had us worried."  
  
Ryou looked around, unfamiliar with the new territory. "Where are we?"  
  
It was so good for Bakura to hear Ryou's voice. "We had to leave the cave." Bakura's expression turned serious. "The cops are on to me, and now Marik as well. They found the bodies of those men I killed. I was already in trouble for escaping from prison, but now if they ever catch me..." the silver-haired Egyptian trailed off. "One of the cops stumbled across where we were. He knocked him out. Both of us are very much dead if we ever get caught now."  
  
Ryou's eyes widened as he shook his head, taking Bakura's hand in his. Just as he had done previously, he drew Bakura's hand up to his lips and kissed each of the fingers. Then, instead of releasing Bakura's hand, he smoothed out the palm and held it against his face. "They can't catch you. You'll be put to death..." Ryou's voice was forced, it sounded as if he was fighting to hold back tears.  
  
"I know," Bakura muttered despondently, "I know."  
  
//  
  
Joey glanced at Tristan. "I'm startin' ta get worried 'bout Seto. I know Yami's people aren't here yet, but he's been gone for over half an hour..."  
  
"We have to stay put." Tristan responded. He too was a little concerned about what was taking Seto so long. It had been a while.  
  
The blonde turned and flopped onto his back in the backseat of the jeep, hands behind his head. His tawny bangs hung infront of golden brown orbs. Joey glared at his hair and pushed it out of his face. He placed his right ankle over his left and stared up at the jeep's roof. Silence took over once again between the two, until Tristan climbed into the front seat and kicked his feet up.  
  
"'ey, Tristan?"  
  
Tristan turned around in his seat and looked at Joey curiously.  
  
"Ya don' think anythin' happened to 'im, do ya?"  
  
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Shori: *Peeks out from behind a random reviewer* ...can I come out now?  
  
Bakura: *Deathglares Shori*  
  
Shori: ...I'll take that as a no. Anyways, guys, thanks for reviewing. Please continue to do so! The review counter is now updated to 115, which is, as you probably guessed, 15 more than the previous minimum thingy. (actually, 15 more than the reviews I have at this moment, heh)  
  
Bakura: No amount of reviews will save you from me if you don't get Ryou better.  
  
Shori: o___o shmeep. Just remember Bakura, you can't kill me. Because if you do, no one will be able to write any more chapters.  
  
Bakura: ... I hate you ... *Walks off cursing in Egyptian*  
  
Shori: ^__^; 


	9. Angry Memories

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: I li~ike the radio, my bank account zero, I do~on't own YGO, the cards or the show. *Blasts 'Punk Rock 101'*  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, maybe some Seto/Joey  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), angst, death, some Ryou- OOC. Dedicated to D and Vi, and Tia ^_^  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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The sun had risen and set since the abrupt change of living space the previous day, but the worry and stress resting on Bakura's shoulders hadn't went away, even in the slightest. He knew Ryou was right - if the police ever caught him now, he would be as good as dead. It wasn't so much the sneaking into the country, escaping from prison, and minor thefts he had commited, but moreso the four people he had murdered. Of course, he could justify his actions, but, he thought, why would they bother to trust the word of a criminal?  
  
Bakura cringed.  
  
He didn't like to think of himself as a criminal, not while he held Ryou so gently in his arms. Holding the boy closer to his chest, Bakura held on to Ryou like a lifeline, as if the police would never think of harming him as long as Ryou was in his embrace. He half expected Ryou to pull away, and inqure why he was being so cuddly. A warm feeling encompassed his heart when Ryou rested his head on his shoulder.  
  
"Ryou?"  
  
The silver-haired British youth looked up into Bakura's eyes, masking the slight pain from all his broken bones, breathing lightly.  
  
"How are your ribs? Do they hurt?"  
  
"A little." Ryou lied. "But don't worry about it, Bakura..." He trailed off and painfully reached for the older boy's hand again. Bowing his head in shame, Ryou rubbed the side of his cheek against Bakura's suprisingly soft skin.  
  
The Egyptian blinked, "Ryou? What's the matter?"  
  
Slightly teary chocolate orbs glanced at the forienger for a moment before the younger shook his head. "Nothing." `Great, the second time I've lied to him within five minutes.` Ryou thought to himself with distaste.  
  
"You miss your family." Bakura mumbled quietly.  
  
"Y-Yes..." Ryou said, slightly shocked.  
  
"And you're worried about your injuries."  
  
"And yours," Ryou said gently, glancing down at the bloodied wound on Bakura's leg. He looked up, confused. "How do you know all this? It's like... It's like you can read my thoughts."  
  
Bakura quirked up his smile. "It's only natural, Ry." The nickname sent a flutter of delight through Ryou's heart. "You're not a homeless traveller like me, and Marik, and Malik. You have a family and a home; you're not adapt to living the way the three of us do, because that's not how you were raised."  
  
A sigh, followed by a nod. "I guess..."  
  
They quieted down with the return of the nearly identical beach blonde Egyptians.  
  
* * *  
  
It had all happened so fast.  
  
Ryou and Bakura had simply been sitting in what minimal shade they could find, wrapped in eachother's arms, prior to the return of Marik and Malik. The three Egyptians had been discussing what their plans were once they became legal citizens, or, in Bakura's case, how he would escape the police and then work on becoming an American citizen. And then it had happened.  
  
Malik was the first one to sense someone heading their way. Quickly, the three older boys had carried Ryou to a somewhat safe hiding spot Marik had found while the two had gone exploring. Ryou had protested at first, but after a few words from Bakura, ("Ryou, don't worry, this is just for precaution in case more freaks like them are back. We'll return soon."), he had agreed to stay put. Quietly, Bakura slipped the dagger out from his waistband and handed it to Ryou, telling him to use it only if absolutely necessary.  
  
The trio had returned to where they were previously, but Bakura should have stayed back with Ryou. That was because the second he crawled out from the secluded patch of rocks and small desert caves, he had unintentionally made direct eye-contact with none other than a very stern and enraged man with soft golden bangs falling over his fiery crimson eyes.  
  
Yami Mutou.  
  
The Chief of Police.  
  
Behind Yami was another blonde, looking equally as angry, although this time the amber glare was sent toward Marik. Leaning somewhat onto the second blonde was the tall brunette officer, Seto Kaiba, who only Marik recognized. And, finally, a hazel-eyed man in his late teens, around the same age as the others, was stationed on the left side of Yami, arms crossed.  
  
Bakura hissed a warning to Marik and Malik, telling them to remain still, but unfortunately they had already been spotted. Neither of them dared to try and make a run for it; even though Marik and Malik probably could have escaped if they were to start running now, Bakura would have undoubtedly been captured due to the infected wound on his leg disabling him from running too fast. Not with so much at stake...  
  
.  
  
"You have the right to remain silent; anything you say or do can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford one, one will be appointed to you. Do you understand these rights?"  
  
Seto addressed Bakura with a tone of disgust as he presented the Egyptian with his rights. Bakura had his hands handcuffed as he nodded in response, a glare set in his dark brown orbs. Marik and Malik were handcuffed as well, and had their rights read to them by Tristan and Yami. The silver- haired Egyptian nodded once, restraining a sigh, as the three of them were shoved into a single police car.  
  
.  
  
And thus they allowed themselves to be caught, without protest, without shouted insults, without even a glance back to Ryou. As they rode in complete silence in the back of a police car driven by a sassy, green-eyed officer who they believed to be named Duke Devlin, the only communication they could make was the occassional eye-contact. For the duration of the trip back to the station, Malik had his head rested on Marik's shoulder, unable to hold Marik's hand against his cheek as he so badly wished to do. Marik couldn't comfort Malik either, due to the demonic handcuffs. Bakura could only drum his fingers on his knees with one hand as he stared off into the distance, no one to hold, no one to hold him. He sighed. He was already missing Ryou as he sat slightly apart from his two - dare he say it? - friends.  
  
The next twenty minutes were hell for Bakura. Guilt was rising in his chest slowly, creeping into every crevice in his heart and making him feel completely horrible for not keeping his promise to his Ryou. Bakura blinked, `How long have I been calling him mine?` He sighed inwardly; if only he had stayed back...  
  
//  
  
Ryou watched in horror as Bakura, Marik, and Malik were driven away in the black-and-white cop car. He tried to remain as silent as he could, since he knew at least three officers were still scouting the area. In spite of himself, he held Bakura's dagger somewhat close; it had been given to him from Bakura and therefore Ryou felt it held some strange kind of sentimental value. He fumbled with the handle of the knife until it fit along his belt well enough to allow him painless mobility.  
  
He froze as he heard and felt someone approaching his hiding spot. Hastily, he covered the blade with the hem of his t-shirt and waited with held-back breath until he couldn't hold the oxygen in any longer. The British youth tenitively lay down in the sand, and took in shallow breaths, hoping he would be mistaken for unconcious or something of the like. Tired as he wasn't, he figured mocking sleep was the only way to get himself out of questioning until he had a better grip on his emotional state of mind.  
  
.  
  
The next thing he was aware of was the irritating beeping of heart and other vital statistic monitors. Ryou eased his eyes open; it felt as if he had been drugged and taken to somewhere unfamiliar, but another, clearer, glance around his surroundings brought the past back like a ton of bricks falling atop his head.  
  
He was in a hospital.  
  
Great.  
  
`Damn officers.` Ryou thought with a glare. `I want to be where Bakura is.`  
  
Turning his head to the left slightly, Ryou saw a hunched-over woman with pale blonde hair, and a single golden wristwatch hanging off a thin wrist. His eyes widened; he hadn't remembered seeing or hearing his mother's voice recently. As he came more to his senses, he noticed his ribs no longer ached the way they had before, and his ankle, which he had forgotten about for the most, didn't hurt at all. Logic told Ryou that he must have been treated for his wounds and injuries, but it didn't tell him what was happening to Bakura.  
  
The woman stirred and looked up at her son, eyes wide, "Ryou! You're awake!"  
  
"Hn." Ryou grumbled in response, he didn't feel like being back with his family right now. Guilt immediately started welling up in his chest; he hadn't meant to sound as rude as he did. "...Sorry."  
  
Ms. Bakura sighed. "Ryou, do you have any idea how worried your grandparents and I were? Why did you run off with that... that criminal, that fiend, like that?"  
  
"*Fiend*?" Ryou's temper flared at that word, "He is not a fiend!" He hissed angrily.  
  
"He is a prison escapee." Ms. Bakura said softly.  
  
Ryou glared slightly, "That means nothing. You don't know him at all, Mother. He's not a bad person!"  
  
"Enough!" Exclaimed the woman, raising her voice, "I won't have my own son standing up for a criminal."  
  
"He is no more a criminal than I am, Mother." Ryou said, eyes pinched closed with restrained fury. The tone in his voice sublty told his mother that the conversation was over; there was no chance of altering his perspective. He watched out of the corner of his eye as Ms. Bakura left the room. He sighed. He missed Bakura, even more than he had before.  
  
//  
  
As Bakura sat despondently in the jail cell he had been thrown into after being booked a second time, Marik and Malik sat off to the side of thier lonesome, silver-haired comrade. Clad in black-and-white striped prison garbs, Malik had never been so unnerved and quiet as he silently held on to Marik's arm. Marik had an arm slung around Malik's waist as he watched Bakura with a cautious eye.  
  
The look of complete hopelessness in those eternally deep brown eyes bore a whole through Marik's being. He had seen Bakura lose confidence upon every other blue moon, but never like this. With a sigh, Marik untangled himself from Malik's arms and sat beside his pale-skinned friend on the cold linoleum floor of the cell.  
  
Bakura glanced up at Marik, glaring. "What?" He didn't feel like being pestered right about now. The only thing he wanted to feel was Ryou in his arms.  
  
"Gee, Bakura, I love you too." Marik replied, biting back the slightly harsh tone his instincts told him to use. Stoic and vengeful as he knew Bakura to be, he knew that the tomb robber was hurting right now, and he had to make sure to be careful with how he spoke. His arms wound themselves around Bakura's waist as Marik pulled the taller boy close to him, pressing Bakura's back against his chest. Having his back secure always comforted him as a child. "Take your shield down. You don't need it anymore."  
  
Bakura grunted in response. "Hn."  
  
"You only had that mask up because you were unconfident, Bakura. But you don't need to wear it every day now. Times have changed since you were ten." Marik whispered softly, releasing Bakura and returning to his spot beside Malik. Casting a level violet gaze on Bakura for a few moments longer, Marik turned his attention back to Malik as he kissed the top of his smaller look-a-like's forehead.  
  
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Bakura: ... *Just sits there glaring at Shori*  
  
Shori: WHAT?!  
  
Bakura: You demon! How could you split me and Ryou up like that?!  
  
Shori: ...because I had to for plot reasons...?  
  
Bakura: . I hate you.  
  
Shori: We've already established that. *Hides from a dagger thrown by Bakura* Anyways, I've updated the review counter to.. yes, that's right! ^_^ 130. Thank you all for reviewing! I think it's the only thing keeping 'Kura-chan from killing me -___-;; *Runs off before Bakura can throw another dagger* 


	10. Tears of an Egyptian

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: *Picks up a pencil* Sorry guys... My authoress powers tell me I still don't own YGO.  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, Seto/Joey, Yami/Yugi? Maybe.  
  
Warnings/Other: YAOI (don't like? don't read.), death, angst, some OOC. Dedications to the usual trio mentioned. Oh, and lil-kat-girl! I finally found a way, thanks to Tia, to bring Yugi into the story for you! ^_^  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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"Officer, you found the bodies, correct?" Yami arched his eyebrow in curiosity.  
  
"Yes." Seto replied.  
  
"Can you decribe the condition of the bodies?"  
  
"Crippling knife wounds, various stabbings... Multiple physically-induced injuries on one of the bodies... the neck was severed."  
  
"Severed? Could you please elaborate?"  
  
"Well.... The head was gone."  
  
"Gone?" Yami's eyes narrowed in seriousness as he wrote down the last details of the murder.  
  
"Decapitated."  
  
"Disgusting. Thank you, Kaiba."  
  
Yami turned around and faced the paler of the three prisoners in the cell. Dark earthen orbs glared back at him through silvery bangs, as if daring him to make a prosecution. The tri-colour-haired officer gave an indignant 'humph' and returned to his paperwork.  
  
Kaiba sneered at Bakura before spinning around on his heel and walking away.  
  
The Chief of Police sauntered over to the cell. Marik and Malik remained silent as Bakura stood, arms crossed, and eyed Yami suspiciously.  
  
.  
  
"So, you didn't think you got yourself into enough trouble the first time..." Yami reached into his pocket and pulled out a single, folded paper. He unfolded it and flattened out the creases. He read off a list, "Thievery... Robbery... Avoiding arrest... Defiance of authority... And of course, sneaking into the country without a passport." Yami shook his head. "Those crimes are minor compared to the murder of four people."  
  
Bakura's eyes flashed with anger, "Your workers haven't traced anything back to me in reguards to those murders."  
  
Yami held back a smirk. "Perhaps we have." Here, a streak of suprise passed through Bakura's expression. "The date of your trial will be coming up shortly. I suggest you think of a way to hire a lawyer, although, as previously explained, if you cannot afford a defensive lawyer, the courts will appoint one to you. Understood?"  
  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Bakura waved off Yami's accusations with a casual flick of the wrist, "Been there, done that."  
  
"I don't think you understand the severity of this case. Your life rests in the court's decisions."  
  
A twisted smile crossed Bakura's face. "Really, now? That sounds interesting." His grin dropped in timing with grave seriousness appearing in his eyes. "I've always loved the rush of adrenaline one experiences while facing what could be their death." Bakura said coolly, leaving a stunned Yami to sort out his words as he sat back down, crossing one leg over the other and glaring through an emotionless façade.  
  
.  
  
"Bakura," Marik said cautiously in Egyptian, after the intense confrontation between the silver-haired Egyptian and Police Chief had ended, "Come on now. You could die if the courts go against you, yet you're making light of this situation as if you were gambling a few stones of common worth."  
  
A shrug. "I'm well aware of that." The syllabels rolled off the sixteen- year-old's tongue with age-old percision as he closed his eyes.  
  
"So why do you continue with this... bluff?" Marik knew he was starting to tread on thin ice as he pressed the topic further. "Last time you were in this situation, Bakura whatever-your-last-name-is, you didn't have anyone who cared for you, nor did you care for anyone else. But this time, the cards you're playing are a lot different. You're not dealing the same deck - you now have someone who loves you, and as much as you don't want to admit it, someone who you love. And you can't take this so lightly anymore."  
  
"Must you bother me with this so much, Marik? I /know/ how serious this is. I /know/ I might die; don't you think I've acknowledged that fact by now? But /Ryou/ doesn't know what's going on right now. /Ryou/ is... I don't even know where the hell he is." Bakura sighed in frustration; Marik knew he had hit it hard just now. "And I'm sure one way or another he'll find his way into this case, and if I make it seem like I'm worried about anything, he'll only be twice, hell, three times as worried, for me. For a stranger he met slightly over a week ago. For a damned prisoner from a whole nother country who shouldn't even be here in the first place."  
  
Marik glared, "Shut it."  
  
"Make me." Bakura opened a single, sharp brown eye and peered Marik from behind his bangs.  
  
Malik, who had been feigning sleep up until now, joined the conversation. His voice peeked out from somewhere behind Marik. "You guys..."  
  
Bakura and Marik ceased their glare-war momentarily while both cast their gazes at Malik.  
  
"Listen. My only crime is sneaking into the country without a passport," he said carefully in his native language, the same Egyptian Bakura and Marik had been speaking in moments before. "I might be able to get out of here and find Ryou. To bring him here."  
  
"No!" Bakura snapped, catching himself and everybody else off guard, "The hell's wrong with you, Malik? What do you think he would say if he found out I'm pretty much on death-row?"  
  
Malik sent Bakura a level glare, "So you perfer to lie to him and say everything's all hunky-dory when in fact your very life is on the line? Don't you think it would be better for him to know the truth?!" He had to bite his tongue to keep his voice from raising as he spoke, standing and weaving his way out of Marik's arms.  
  
Bakura snorted, "Fine. Do what you want." He muttered angrily. Everything had taken such a drastic change of events, he wasn't sure what to think. "Whatever." His two cellmates noticed the change in language, back to English.  
  
"I'm glad you have so much faith in me." Malik mumbled in Egyptian before he, himself, switched back to English as well. "I won't tell him what's going on, okay, Bakura? Just trust me on this one." A smile suddenly lit Malik's features, "Remember, /I/ wasn't the one who was caught." He chuckled to himself as he called over the attention of the officer he remembered from the 'car-trip' to the station, Duke Devlin.  
  
//  
  
A long while had gone by since Ryou's mother exploded out of the room in a fit of rage. Quite frankly, he didn't see why she got so upset the way she did. But he didn't delve too deep into thoughts - his only focus right now was how he could find a way to reunite with Bakura. He listened to the steady beep of the heart monitor, and momentarily considered pulling it out and making a run for it while it was still in the lunch hour. Slowly, he reached his hand up towards the plug for all the machinery, carefully holding on to the cord between the joints in his index and middle finger. He began drawing his elbow back to pull the plug...  
  
The door swung open and Ryou jerked his arm back to his side, muttering a curse under his breath. `Damn. I was so close.`  
  
He sat up in the hospital bed, and for the first time since he had awoken, he became aware of the light blue hospital gown draped around his thin body. Glaring at whoever it was entering his room at such an inopportune moment, he found himself suddenly angered at how similar this other teen was to that damned officer who had taken away his Bakura.  
  
The other smiled at him through gentle golden bangs. "Hey there! I'm Yugi Mutou, your doctor."  
  
Ryou cracked a momentary, mildly sarcastic smile. "My pleasure." He mumbled out of half-intended respect.  
  
"You're lucky, Ryou. Most of your ribs were fractured, only a few actually broke... And that ankle just needed a little bit of therapy. It should be fine within a day or so."  
  
"Hn."  
  
Yugi blinked at his patient, concern present in his wide magenta orbs. "You okay?"  
  
Ryou had to wait a few seconds before answering, so that he wouldn't glare. `He's only trying to be nice, Ryou... Give him a chance...` He told himself mentally. "No." The fifteen-year-old glanced up at Yugi with slightly teary eyes. "The one I love is going to be put on death-row."  
  
"What?" Yugi asked, shocked. "That's awful! I'm so sorry."  
  
"Tell me about it." Ryou sighed.  
  
The room lapsed into silence thereafter; Yugi tried to keep a conversation going, but Ryou obviously didn't feel like talking that much. Eventually, Yugi had to leave to take care of another patient, and he bid a goodbye of dampened cheer to Ryou before the silence came back, and Ryou was left alone once again to sort out his thoughts.  
  
.  
  
Just as he was getting somewhere with all his emotions and random ideas, the door creaked open a second time, and Ryou opened a single chocolate- coloured eye to see who had bothered his thinking this time. He gasped in suprise when none other than Malik slipped inside the room.  
  
"Finally. I thought I'd never find you in here, Ryou." Malik said, grinning.  
  
"Malik?" Ryou blinked, "Where are the others?"  
  
A pause. "They're back at the station." He said truthfully. "But I came to get you out of here." Malik lowered his tone considerably as a nurse walked by outside. "Let me explain how I got out. Since my only crime was sneaking into this country, I was able to convert my punishment of 90 days in jail to a fine of five-hundred American dollars. So I got out easy."  
  
"What about Bakura, and Marik?" Ryou asked hesitantly.  
  
Malik frowned, a long streak of remorse passing through his captivating lavender eyes. "They're alright..."  
  
Ryou continued gazing at Malik; he didn't quite believe him.  
  
The Egyptian climbed onto the bed beside Ryou, and slung an arm casually around the silver-haired youth. "I know you probably don't trust me that much, but just remember, Marik and I have been 'Kura's friends for a long time." He rubbed the side of Ryou's arm with his fingers. "I promise I'll help you get to Bakura, 'kay?" Malik smiled genuinely, hoping to gain what little trust he could from Ryou.  
  
After a long while, Ryou nodded slowly. "I trust you."  
  
//  
  
Bakura sighed for what seemed like the millionth time that day and glared threateningly at the clock hanging above the entrance to the room containing the cells of not only his shared cell with Marik, but other wrongdoers as well. He almost wished Ryou was in the cell with him right now, just so he could hold the boy a little bit more in what he felt to be his last few days of life.  
  
He dwelled on Ryou for a long time during Marik's silence. The thief remembered the first time he had set eyes on Ryou, the first time they fell asleep in eachother's arms, their first kiss... Bakura trailed a thin finger over his lips. His unbreakable mask was slipping one piece at a time as he continued angsting over his seperation from Ryou.  
  
His view of the clock and boring grey wall was suddenly blocked and replaced by two dark violet orbs. Bakura blinked, and sat up straight; he hadn't realized he was hunched over just now. Marik's hand raised to his cheek, and for a moment Bakura froze, completely immobile, as the memory of his mother's death years ago flashed before his eyes. The memory vanished as Marik wiped something away from Bakura's cheek.  
  
"Tears? I didn't think you could cry, Bakura."  
  
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Shori: ^__^ CHAPTER TEN! It's o_o completed. But wait! This story is far from over. I refuse to let it end now! x_x I wouldn't let it end now, anyways...  
  
Bakura: You better not let it end yet.  
  
Shori: Noooo worries, Bakura ^_^. Review counter updated to 150! 15 more than I have right now ^_^  
  
Yugi: ^_^! I finally get a part! Though it was kinda small... It was still a part!  
  
Shori: Yup! And, I'm sorry to all Mokuba fans, but he's just too young to be in this fic... Anyways, ja ne minna! Please continue reviewing! Thanks!  
  
~Shori Musei~ 


	11. Don't Wanna Die

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: I own this *Points at CD collection* and this *Holds up a stuffed animal wolf* and even this *Holds up algebra work* But I don't own YGO... Anyone wanna bid for my algebra homework, though?  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, side Seto/Joey. Yami/Yugi? Perhaps.  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), angst, death, maybe some OOC. Hi to D and Tia.  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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"What?" Bakura asked, taken aback as Marik dried the tear by rubbing his thumb and index finger together. "I'm not crying!" He snapped, glaring at his friend momentarily.  
  
Marik smirked. "Sure you're not. That's why you're so depressed and tense- your shields are crumbling and you're worried about it."  
  
Bottomless earthen orbs glared a second time, "Since when did you become the bloody voice of reason, Marik?"  
  
"Since I felt like it." Marik replied simply, shrugging. "No one else took the role so I figured why not."  
  
Bakura simply stared. "I'll never understand you 'till the day I die." He muttered sarcastically, although once the meaning of his words set in, he sighed. "As close as that day might be."  
  
Marik absentmindedly played with the hem of his prison shirt. "There's a chance you'll live."  
  
"And you know that for a fact?" Bakura asked rhetorically. When Marik didn't reply, he rolled his eyes and rest his chin atop his fist. "This sucks."  
  
The tanned Egyptian nearly burst into laughter, and he would have if the situation wasn't so serious. Instead, he smirked a second time. "I don't know what that Ryou kid did to you, but I've never heard you say that for as long as I've known you."  
  
Bakura shrugged. "Times change, and so do people. Like you said, things aren't the same as they were when I was ten. Perhaps it's time I let the past be and work towards whatever future there is."  
  
Silence.  
  
//  
  
But for the steady beeping of the heart monitor, room 301A in the Hendidura¹ Medical Center was completely silent. Ryou and Malik had agreed to escape at midnight, when most of the staff had already left for the day, and just a few wandering nurses stationed each floor. That way, Ryou would have already had lunch and dinner, and hopefully a little more energy in his system.  
  
Time flew by quickly that day, and once the annoying ticking of the hospital clock told them midnight had finally arrived, Malik snuck outside the room carefully, peeking his head past the wall connecting the four hospital rooms (301A, B, C, and D) just enough to get a clear view of the hallways. Once he was sure no one was coming for a while, he turned back and nodded at Ryou, who quickly reached up and pulled the plug out of all the monitors. The IV plug was a bit harder, as one part of it was actually in his skin. Biting his tongue, he eased the IV needle out of his arm and held the gauze pad against his skin until he was sure it had stopped bleeding.  
  
Ryou had already changed out of his hospital gown, and into the clothes he had been wearing prior to being taken to the hospital. They ran quietly against the wall, careful to pause momentarily and check that no patients were awake. Thankfully, the floors were silent for the most and they were able to get to the bottom floor within no time at all.  
  
As they were nearing the main lobby and the exit, Malik grabbed Ryou's wrist and held him back. Ryou spun around and arched his eyebrow curiously.  
  
"Look." Malik whispered, pointing diagonally up to the right at a video camera monitoring the width of the lobby. "We have to get past that without being seen."  
  
"Great." Ryou muttered, fingering the end of his shirt sleeve.  
  
Malik pulled Ryou against him when the camera spun in their area. "Got a plan?"  
  
There was a long pause as Ryou thought hard, until his serious expression faded away. "Yes, I do." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a long, silver blade; Malik recognized it to be Bakura's beloved dagger. "We've only got once chance at this working, so we'll need to be careful."  
  
Malik nodded. "What's your plan?"  
  
"Simple." Ryou replied, as if his idea was the most obvious thing ever, "Throw the dagger at the camera, retrieve it after disarming said camera, then run."  
  
"Sounds good to me." Malik said, "I've been practicing for ages. I'll do it."  
  
He took the blade from Ryou and ran two fingers over the length of the blade. With age-old percision, he drew the dagger back and let it fly straight into the glass center of the video camera. Sensing that alarms might go off soon, he ushered Ryou out the door. He turned back towards the inside of the lobby and climbed atop the main desk, jumping up and catching the dagger by the handle. He hopped down off the table and ran outside, catching Ryou's wrist and dragging him along as both ran. Behind them, lights flickered on one after the other on different floors until almost every floor was illuminated by lights.  
  
"Got the dagger?" Ryou asked through breaths as they continued running. His ribs ached slightly, but not enough to deter him from the task at hand.  
  
"Yup," Malik replied, winking slightly.  
  
* * *  
  
That same day, Thursday, a week later found Bakura standing in the defendant's corner in the court of law, with a woman he knew as a miss Tea Gardener acting in his defense. He didn't particularly trust her, but not because he didn't like her- he hadn't even met the woman when she had been appointed has his defense attorney.² So far, things had been going violently against him no matter what Tea tried to tell the judge, who, to Bakura's ultimate fury, looked like an older, shorter, slightly chubbier version of Yami Mutou.  
  
The arraignment hadn't gone well. He had been charged with four counts of first degree murder (the worst kind, he later found out with a sigh) and remand had been denied.  
  
He stood with his hands resting tensely on the stand while he glared into Judge--this was what really angered him; the judge was in fact related to Yami--Mutou's eyes. Bakura managed to keep his expression empty enough, but he could hardly believe what was going on. The past week he had spent in the prison cell with Marik by his side, serving as an oddly supportive friend, had gone by so fast, and now reality struck him. His very life would soon be over at the hands of the courts if things continued going the way they were.  
  
The prosecutor, a tall blonde woman with fiery magenta eyes and lengthly blonde hair, seemed to have made it a hobby of calling him a cold-blooded murderer every chance she got.  
  
"Your Honor, this man is obviously a criminal of the worst breed, he slaughtered four men in cold blood!"  
  
The door in the back of the court room opened, and a thin boy with silver hair to match Bakura's entered the room.  
  
"What kind of decent human would attempt such a feat, Your Honor?"  
  
"One with a crime record such as this man deserves nothing but punishment!"  
  
"A cold-blooded criminal! Look at his eyes, they are the eyes of a murderer! A killer!"  
  
"A heartless, selfish, inhuman pig!"  
  
Ryou's eyes widened. `No way they're talking about Bakura!`  
  
"Comitting the murder of four is bad enough, Your Honor, but to go so far as to decapitate another human is completely unforgivable! That, Your Honor, is why I say he should be put to death! Forget life in prison, Sir, that's too good! Death is the only suitable punishment!"  
  
For one horrible moment, Bakura froze completely as a gasp escaped his lips. Treacherously deep eyes wide, Bakura could only stare at the prosecutor in horror. Deep inside his heart, he prayed the judge wouldn't give him the death penalty. As cliche as he found it to be, it seemed as if everything was passing before his eyes. He had to smirk at what was happening mentally, although his heart wasn't in it.  
  
Ryou paled until it looked as if he could be drawn on a sheet of paper; a faint, dizzy feeling attacked him, but he stood still. They couldn't kill Bakura... He needed him. Tears started filling his chocolate eyes, and he shook his head, backing up against the door, clutching his head with his hands. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he ran forward, catching everyone off guard, until he was standing beside Bakura. "NO! No! It isn't true! It isn't true!"  
  
"Ryou?! What are you--why are you here?!" Bakura hissed, completely shocked. "You shouldn't /be/ here!"  
  
"Order! Order!" Cried the judge, standing to his feet.  
  
Ryou shook his head violently, "No! No! Bakura didn't kill those men, he didn't..." The courtroom went silent as Ryou kept his gaze reasonably steady. "I did." He sniffed and turned his head to look at Bakura.  
  
The Egyptian had never looked so taken aback in his life. He was too suprised to even move as he stared back into Ryou's determined eyes.  
  
"No! Not Bakura. I killed them!" Ryou pleaded, turning back to the judge. "It was me!" Shakily, he reached into his pocket and pulled out Bakura's knife, now covered with his finger prints. "I did it!"  
  
The defense stood up, "Your Honor, I request an immediate dismissal of charges!"  
  
Mai Valentine, the prosecutor, lowered her hand from her mouth and spun around on her heel. "Your Honor!"  
  
"Order! Remove this man from the court!" Judge Mutou cast a beady glare at Ryou, who was fighting to control his wild heartbeat as he held the dagger tightly in his hands.  
  
Tea slammed her hands down on the defense table, "Your Honor! A dismissal of charges, please!"  
  
The gravel came in harsh contact with the judge's stand. "I declare this a mistrial!"  
  
"Your Honor!"  
  
Judge Mutou called a recess for the courts, and gave the police and people of the court twenty-four hours to process the information Ryou had given him during the recess.  
  
//  
  
After what seemed like months later, but was actually only an hour, the people had found evidence to support Ryou's story of rape and kidnapping. It was still somewhat dense though, and no one had even told Bakura or Ryou for that matter what was going on.  
  
.  
  
Bakura was racing around the law building, trying to find Ryou. The silver- haired youth had dissapeared shortly after recess was called, on the verge of tears, and Bakura hadn't even had the chance to speak to him. After combing every inch of the building that he could, Bakura came across a bathroom and decided to check there for doubt's sake.  
  
Ryou was curled up in the corner of the bathroom against the wall and under the sink, obviously crying. Bakura noticed his dagger was absent; it must have been confiscated during Ryou's interrogation.  
  
The Egyptian quickly joined his koi under the sink and pulled him into an embrace. Ryou sobbed into his shoulder, clinging to the older boy's waist like a lifeline.  
  
"Ryou... Why did you take the blame for my crime?" Bakura asked, unaware of the slightly harsh tone in his voice as he held the boy tighter.  
  
The fifteen-year-old in question shook his head and took a deep breath, finally calming down slightly.  
  
"Bakura, I don't want to die."  
  
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1 - Hendidura is Spanish for 'cleft' -__-; I just opened my dictionary and used the first word I saw.  
  
2 - NOT intended for Tea bashing.  
  
Bakura: ...I'm gonna kill you, that's it, Shori.  
  
Shori: o___o Uh, Bakura, you know you can't do that.  
  
Bakura: A man can dream, can't he?  
  
Shori: ...You can kill me in your dreams, as long as you don't really. Oh, and by the way, the review counter is updated to 170, which is 15 more than what I have right now if my math is right (I'm at 155 reviews! ^_^ w00)  
  
Bakura: This is one time I hope I sleepwalk.  
  
Shori: ...¬¬ 


	12. Justified? Almost

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: Hm. *Uses the Magic 8 Ball* Magic 8 Ball, do I own YGO? It says 'My Answer is No.' That should tell ya.  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, side Seto/Joey. Yami/Yugi? Maaaaaybe.  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), angst, death, maybe some OOC. _ D, here's your chapter.  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
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A pale hand lifted gently to wipe away tears from an equally pale cheek. Bakura sighed and ran his fingers through Ryou's hair. He didn't want the tender-hearted British youth to encounter any harm, either.  
  
"Bakura," Ryou whispered, "Please tell me they won't give me death." Having barely any knowledge of the law process, he hardly had any ideas as to what would happen once the trial was resumed.  
  
The Egyptian remained silent as he thought. He hated making promises when he didn't know if he could stick to his word. With a heavy heart, he replied as best he could. "I doubt they'll even punish you. After all, if what you said to them led them to believe you... or, really, I... acted in self-defense, then it would be justifiable."  
  
"I hope so..." Ryou replied, "I really do."  
  
Bakura simply held Ryou close to him.  
  
//  
  
The next day at 2:30 P.M., the court's 24-hours to decide the outcome of the case were over, and they were forced to make a decision. Still, not a word had been said to Bakura or Ryou, which caused both of them a lot of emotional torment and stress. At one point, Bakura wished someone would tell him what as going on, even if he was told both he and Ryou would be put to death, even though he did not wish for that result.  
  
.  
  
Bakura and Ryou were sitting in the main lobby of the law building, each lost in his own world, his own private escape from the scenario around them. Bakura had laced his fingers with Ryou's as soon as they had sat down, but he didn't even try to start up a conversation. Occassionally, out of the back of his mind, a question about Marik and Malik's well-being would pop into his head, but he found he hadn't the will to try and answer the question.  
  
Ryou hadn't seen hide nor hair of his mother ever since that day in the hospital. Half of him was sad about that fact, half of him could care quite less. He wasn't sure if he could find it in him to forgive her for the way she had badmouthed his Bakura, but his conscience told him that it was only correct to forgive, as much as he didn't want to.  
  
The silence surrounding them was somewhat tense, but mostly just dull as they sat, boring holes into the every-day beige colour of the walls. Neither of them saw the tall, blonde figure approaching them until a female voice coughed, "Ahem."  
  
Instantly, their heads snapped up, and Ryou felt all the colour drain from his face at the sight of who had interrupted the moment.  
  
* * *  
  
Malik sighed and stared into the nearly identical orbs of his love, who leaned against the cement-like wall on the opposite side of the cell. He hated seeing Marik so restrained, so... defeated. Marik's hair fell despondently infront of furious violet orbs, but that fury had to remain kept in. The younger of the two boys frowned from outside the cell.  
  
"Marik?"  
  
"What." Replied the Egyptian, lifting his head slightly.  
  
Malik pushed his hand through the bars and reached for Marik, though he knew he couldn't actually reach him. "I wish you weren't in there."  
  
"Don't we all? I almost wish I was in Bakura's spot, just to get /out/ of here..." Marik grumbled.  
  
"I don't want you in Bakura's position." Sighed Malik as he asked a passing officer to be let into the cell. At first, the officer refused, but after some convincing, the obviously new officer opened the barred door to Marik's cell. Malik slipped inside as the door was closed.  
  
.  
  
Weaving his way into Marik's arms, Malik nuzzled the side of his head against Marik's shoulder and clung to the slightly older boy. It felt so good to be held again; having to fall asleep alone in a cold, empty bed the police station had provided him with always left him with a feeling if transparency. "I'll find a way to get you out of here, Marik. I promise." Whispered the smooth-haired Egyptian in his native language, sending shivers down Marik's spine.  
  
Marik held the boy closer. "Don't get yourself in trouble."  
  
"I won't."  
  
"Promise?" Marik asked as he placed a tender kiss on the delicate lips infront of him.  
  
"Promise," Malik said, returning the kiss.  
  
* * *  
  
Bakura glared into the fiery magenta orbs that noted his hand laced with Ryou's. "You got a staring problem, or are you here to tell me something?"  
  
"I would advise /against/ speaking to your /prosecutor/ in that matter." Replied Mai Valentine, settling a dainty hand on her hip.  
  
A roll of the eyes, "I'll talk to you however I want. Now what is it you want to tell me?" Bakura asked, nearly having to bite his tongue to keep himself from using a harsher tone of voice than he already was. Out of the corner of his eye, Ryou glanced worriedly at him.  
  
"The courts have reached a decision on the story you two have given us," Mai said, "Luckily for you, it has been filed as a justifiable homicide."  
  
Ryou let out a sigh of relief and smiled up at Bakura. "Thank you, Ms...?" He trailed off, unsure of the woman's last name.  
  
"Valentine." With a dissapointed 'humph', Mai turned and left the two nearly albino boys to themselves.  
  
.  
  
Ryou practically jumped out of his seat and into Bakura's lap as he smiled wider than Bakura had ever seen before. "Did you hear, Bakura? We're off!"  
  
"I heard." Bakura muttered, snaking his arms around the fifteen-year-old's waist.  
  
"But you don't sound or look very happy?"  
  
A shrug. Bakura kissed Ryou's forehead and absentmindedly played with a few locks of silvery hair. "I am happy."  
  
The British youth held his smile with dampened cheer. "Then what's wrong?"  
  
"Didn't you see that look she gave us?"  
  
"I did."  
  
"She wanted us to die."¹  
  
Ryou's smile faded. "She did..." The smile returned to Ryou's face, "But the courts ruled in our favor, so..."  
  
"We were lucky this time." Bakura sighed, ending the conversation by somewhat forcefully pressing his lips against Ryou's as they stood and began leaving the main lobby.  
  
.  
  
Walking down the long hallway, Bakura couldn't help but glance behind himself every few seconds just to make sure someone wasn't going to suddenly appear behind him and say the court's decision was reversed. Finally, after being told by Ryou to calm down, he gave up looking over his shoulder and instead became fascinated with the ground beneath his shoes as he walked.  
  
Sensing someone infront of him, Bakura looked up just in time to see his defense attorney, Tea Gardener, entering the excessively long hallway from another door. He blinked momentarily, then nodded his 'hello' and continued walking. When a hand was placed on his shoulder, he had to once again bite his tongue to keep himself from snapping at whoever it was. His attorney quickly started a mostly one-sided conversation with him about the case and how the courts had reached their decision.  
  
Ryou, who wasn't really paying any attention to Tea (not like Bakura was, anyways), let his gaze wander around the room until Bakura finished talking to Tea. Once Bakura's attention was all his again, he smiled cutely and stood on his tipee-toes. Bakura looked at him curiously, until out of nowhere, candy-like tiers were pressed against his lips. The moment would have been perfect, except for the angry footsteps approaching them quickly.  
  
"RYOU! What do you think you're doing, young man?!"  
  
The boy in question reluctantly broke the kiss and glanced around for the source of the voice.  
  
He paled.  
  
Coffee mug held in a death-grip in her right hand, Ryou's mother had never looked so angry.  
  
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1 - Not meant for Mai-Bashing.  
  
Shori: Wow, guys. I'm sorry. This chapter is shorter than all the others, it sucks, and I'm sorry if things seemed sort of rushed. This week has been completely horrible in more ways than one.  
  
Bakura: ...And why is that?  
  
Shori: For one, my (censor)ing 7th period teacher has been making us write sappy love poems for the ENTIRE week, and I hate Valentine's Day with a passion, and I begged her to let me write about ANYTHING else, but noooo... _ And then there was the freak-out I had yesterday where I went from super pissed to super perky to super pissed to super perky in a span of about 45 seconds.  
  
Bakura: o_o And to think people call me a lunatic. Just because I don't particularly trust Shori's state of mental health right now, the review counter is updated to 190, even though that's more 3 more than what would make 15 from the current amount of reviews, but she and I both are too lazy to do the exact math. Deal with it. 


	13. Trust

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: *Eats pocky that was mentioned in chapter 1's disclaimer* Well... there goes my ownage of YGO.  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, side Seto/Joey. Yami/Yugi? Maybe, maybe not.  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), angst, death, maybe some OOC. Shoutouts to the usual. Oh, and a huge thanks to Sam-chan (Ice Princess Xia) READ HER STUFF!  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to the desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  


* * *

  
Ms. Bakura's mug of hot liquid dropped from her hand and fell to the linoleum-tiled floor. Steam lifted into the air wherever the coffee spilled from the crack in the ceramic cup. Upon looking up hesitantly into his mother's face, Ryou noticed a look of rage present in her darkened orbs.  
  
"Ryou..." Ms. Bakura started, "/What/ has gotten into you? First you run off with no note, no anythings, not even a good-bye! Then you drive your grandparents and I insane with worry. And when I finally get to see you again in the hospital, you defend this... this criminal!" She jerked her head towards the pale-skinned Egyptian, "Run off again, almost get put to death...! Ryou, where did I go wrong with you?"  
  
Compared to the look of anger on Ryou's face, Bakura's glare was nothing. "Mother... I told you before... He is no more a criminal than I am." The boy said calmly.  
  
"Leave him be," Bakura hissed, stepping infront of Ryou as he sensed the beginnings of a huge argument starting to form. "Do you even know the whole story?"  
  
She narrowed her eyes, "Get away from my son."  
  
"And if I refuse?"  
  
"There won't be any room for refusals! I'll get a restraining order, you won't be able to come near my son!"  
  
"Are you taking into consideration Ryou's feelings? Perhaps he does not /want/ a restraining order."  
  
"/Perhaps/ you're biting off more than you can chew! I bet it's your fault he landed in the hospital in the first place!"  
  
"/My/ fault?! If it wasn't for me, he'd fucking be dead!" Bakura's rage exploded at this point, and he stepped forward, slamming his fist into the wall. His hand dug through the plaster as a hole larger than twice the size of his fist fell through onto the insides of the building. "He'd fucking be dead!"  
  
.  
  
Ryou could only watch from the sidelines as the love of his life and his family went head-to-head in the worst verbal argument he had ever seen. Tears were forming in the backs of his eyes as the war raged on. There was only one time he had ever seen Bakura this upset, and that was when four lives had been taken. Of course, in that instance, Ryou wasn't particularly mournful, although he didn't wish for anyone to have been killed, at least not the way the murder had been committed.  
  
Ms. Bakura's jewelry clanked as she slammed her hand on the small table inbetween a row of relaxing chairs, "You're a fucking prisoner, what would you know about love?!"  
  
"I was about to ask you the same question! Suppose you hadn't ignored him the way you had, you wouldn't be hating yourself so badly now," Bakura smirked, lowering his voice to just above a raspy whisper.  
  
Ryou broke in here, knowing full well that Bakura's comment would only aggravate the situation. Taking a breath, he ran inbetween Bakura and his mother from where he had been subconsiously pushed aside once the argument had flared. "STOP IT!" He shouted, arms still extended to his sides as the tears began to drip down from his earthen orbs. "Please, stop it! I don't want to see you two fighting anymore!" When he was answered with nothing but shocked silence, he continued. "Please. Stop. Just stop it."  
  
A hand grapsed his shoulder, and he was spun around forcefully, so that he almost fell backwards onto Bakura, who he had been facing a moment ago. His teary brown eyes met the enraged ones of his mother. Never before could he remember her eyes looking so purely demonic and furious, filled with such rage and hate that for a second, he thought his real mother had been replaced with a carbon copy. He stepped back as his mother's lips parted. He fumbled behind his back until he found Bakura's hand.  
  
"Ryou, I don't know what's gotten into you." Her tone was low, yet the rabidity she was trying to control could not be repressed. "But now I'm posing you with a choice. I'm sick of you sticking up for someone who doesn't deserve it."  
  
Bakura and Ryou both glared.  
  
"You can with come home with me, like a respectable son, and live with your /family/, and /forget/ about that human you say is important to you."  
  
Ryou glanced back at Bakura and took another reversed step closer to him. "Or...?"  
  
"Or you can forget ever having the house you grew up in be your home, and you can go with... him," she said, tone full of disgust, "But if you do chose that, you can also forget having a family with your grandparents and me."  
  
Bakura's glare shot up in levels of intensity. "How the fuck can you even /think/ that?! What kind of 'mother' are you?!"  
  
Tears that Ryou didn't know existed began sliding down his cheeks. He shook his head and took a couple more steps back, wiping his eyes. Time seemed to stop completely as Ryou tried to control his sobs; he couldn't believe his own mother could say that to him. Finally, his form stopped shaking and he stood straight, looking his Bakura in the eye. "You understand, I've decided to go with the one I trust the most and love the most."  
  
The Egyptian tried to keep his face expressionless, completely unaware of Ryou's decision. "I understand." He said, crestfallen.  
  
"Good! Now, Ryou, let's go find the car..."  
  
"Mother, I'm not leaving with you."  
  
"...and then we'll get lun-- What?!"  
  
Bakura's eyes widened. "Ryou?"  
  
Ryou silently stepped closer to Bakura and burried his head in his chest, wrapping his arms around the sixteen-year-old's waist. "I'm staying with Bakura."  
  
Ms. Bakura's face was red with anger as she stared, caught off guard at Ryou's unexpected answer. "How-how can you /chose/ that?!"  
  
"It wasn't hard at all. By asking me that question and forcing me to choose, I knew that going with you was the wrong choice. No mother who truly loved her child would ever say something like that..." Ryou mumbled despondently.  
  
For one horrible moment, the world went silent, shocked by Ryou's statement, and hesitant to hear the reaction.  
  
"Fine then! If you want to throw everything away like that, Ryou, then you go right ahead." Ms. Bakura's fist was shaking in rage as she turned and stormed down the hallway in the opposite direction, obviously lost for any other words.  
  
Bakura just stared at Ryou, dumbstruck, as a loud, shouted curse was heard from the other side of the court building.  
  
.  
  
"Ryou...?" Bakura asked, once the boy had finally dried the last of his tears. "I... How... Why...?" Still in a state of shock, Bakura found it hard to pose his question.  
  
The boy in question shook his head slowly as he clung to Bakura's waist, his mind a swirling mix of heaven and hell. He never wanted to lose his family. As much as he despised his relatives at times, like most teenagers his age did, he loved them and it was tearing him apart slowly. The realization that he could never return to his warm, comfy mattress he had had since childhood at the end of each day; that he wouldn't be able to fall asleep underneath the painted stars on his ceiling, nor awaken to his favourite radio station playing a song brought on another waterfall of tears, but this time he managed to keep them at bay.  
  
Bakura only felt intense hatred for Ryou's mother right now. He couldn't believe anyone could be so harsh to his Ryou. Furthermore, he had always grown up believing every mother was like his own: Caring, loving, affectionate, without the capability of anger. But, he thought with a mental sigh, that perfect image of a maternal figure was ruined the day the man claiming to be his father became enraged at beat her to death. Since then, he had never had a role model until he met Malik and his older sister, Ishizu. She could never fill the gap in his heart, but it was something. And, now, Ryou's soft, gentle presence had started eating away at the void, replacing the emptiness with a natural ecstacy.  
  
Returning to the present, and once again putting the past behind him, Bakura tightened his grip around Ryou's waist and somewhat hesitantly placed his chin on the smaller boy's shoulder.  
  
"Bakura?" Ryou's voice barely broke the silence that had surrounded the two.  
  
He looked down curiously. "Ryou?"  
  
"What's going to happen to me now? I mean, I don't have a home, you don't have a home, Marik and Malik don't... Where are we going to live?"  
  
"I don't know." Bakura replied reluctantly, though honestly. "We'll just have to see what happens."  
  
A sigh, followed by a gasp. "Bakura... Marik's still at the station, isn't he?"  
  
Bakura paused, he had almost forgotten where Marik was due to the trial. "I believe so, yes."  
  
Ryou untangled himself from Bakura's arms, much to the other's dismay. "We should go try and get him out."  
  
"We should." Bakura nodded before capturing Ryou's lips in a passionate kiss.  
  
.  
  
Ryou gasped in suprise, giving Bakura the chance to slip his tongue through the slightly parted lips. He explored and memorized each and every inch of Ryou's mouth, sending shivers through both bodies. Ryou melted into the kiss and gave Bakura full control of the situation. Eventually, they had to part for air, although it was clear neither of them wanted to. Both boys were breathing heavily.  
  
Ryou panted, smiling. The kiss left him in a purely blissful state as he stared adoringly into Bakura's eyes. "I trust you."  
  
Empty shock spread across the pale Egyptian's face. It both overwhelmed and overjoyed him that someone as pure and perfect as Ryou would place their trust in him. The only problem, was whether or not he felt he could place his heart in someone else's hands. It wasn't that he didn't trust Ryou, because he did... to an extent. After his past relationship with a certian spiky-haired, dark-skinned Egyptian had failed, Bakura found it extremely difficult to trust anyone. Deep inside himself, although he would never verbally admit it, he was afraid of being hurt a second time, afraid of having promises being broken, of having to piece his heart and life back together again.  
  
Bringing himself back to reality with a mental shake of the head, he found himself gazing into a pair of hesitant brown eyes. Once it became known to him that he was supposed to say something back right about now, he parted his lips and cleared his throat, lost for words.  
  
"Bakura?" Ryou asked carefully, studying the other's face for any signs of flickering emotion.  
  
Unable to think of a response yet again, Bakura cupped Ryou's face in his hands gently, and pulled the boy closer, almost fearfully pressing his lips to the candy-like tiers infront of him.  
  
"Do you... trust me?"  
  
Bakura's hands dropped to his side. He raised his eyes and looked deeply into Ryou's orbs for a very long time, until at last he forced himself to speak. This was it, the hardest thing he had ever had to do...  
  
"Yes."  
  


* * *

  
Shori: WOOHOO! I FINISHED THIS CHAPTER!  
  
Bakura: ...I'm... Not even going to comment, Shori...  
  
Shori: Whaaaat? What'd I do /now/, 'Kura?  
  
Bakura: -__-; The question is what /haven't/ you done, and what are you /planning/ on doing.  
  
Shori: Not a lot, Bakura. I fear this story is going to be ending within a couple chapters.  
  
Bakura: ... *Gets down on his knees* Thank you, Ra!  
  
Shori: o_o Right. Uh, Bakura, you're scaring me. And the review counter is updated to... O_O holy woah... 205!  
  
Bakura: *Coughs and gets up* It's my /job/ to scare people, baka.  
  
Shori: ...You odd person. 


	14. Epilouge A Moonlit Kiss

A Warm Heart in a Cold Desert  
  
Disclaimer: Bakura says I won't be owning YGO any time soon. o_o How can he do tarot readings with Duel Monsters cards?  
  
Pairings: Bakura/Ryou, Marik/Malik, side Seto/Joey. No Yami/Yugi, they just aren't in the fic any more. And this chapter.. is the epilouge.  
  
Warnings/Other: Yaoi (Don't like? Don't read.), angst, death, maybe some OOC. Shoutouts to D, Tia, and Kate.  
  
Summary: -AU- Bakura, an Egyptian prison escapee. Ryou, a contradictory teenager sick of the family life. After Ryou is dragged along on his family trip to the desert, he finds Bakura in the back of his car, and decides to run away with him. There's only one problem. They're lost in the desert with no idea where civilization is. YAOI BxR  
  
-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-  
  
About a year had past since Ryou left his family and life behind, deciding to join Marik, Malik, and Bakura on their journeys. Getting Marik out of jail hadn't been the easiest of tasks, but it was certianly much simpler than Bakura and Ryou's trial. Bakura's injured leg had healed almost completely, the only memoir of the gash in his leg being a four-inch long scar, but he could live with that.  
  
Ryou's sixteenth birthday had come and gone, and, for the first time, his birthday was enjoyable. At times, Ryou would miss his old life, but luckily the quartet had come across many fortunate events, and they were able to lease a small house in a relaxing, suburban community. Ryou had returned to school to finish up his last year of high-school, pleased to have Malik joining him for the 12th grade. Bakura and Marik, being the two oldest, sought jobs to pay for the apartment, utility bills, and food.  
  
Though he had been slightly untrusting of Malik at first, Ryou and the blonde Egyptian eventually grew to be the best of friends, whereas Bakura and Marik were finally able to solidify their friendship and move on from the past. Over time, Ryou had also grown to become very good friends with Marik. Bakura and Ryou's romantic relationship had blossomed, bestowing a peaceful feeling upon both of them that could only make them happier. Marik and Malik had had their relationship grow into a very rewarding and splendid.  
  
Things were going very well for the three Egyptians and single Britian.  
  
.  
  
Bakura, having been granted the day off at work, anxiously awaited Ryou's return from school as he sat on the couch near the front door. He checked his watch; 3:45pm. He knew Ryou got out of school at 3:04 due to his seventh period, and Bakura also knew that the bus Ryou took home only came once an hour, at either quater-till or twenty-five-till.  
  
3:45:50.  
  
He got up and unlatched the door, leaving the locks in their same position. Flattening out the creases in his loose-fitting blue shirt, he took his seat on the couch and crossed one leg over the other.  
  
3:46:00.  
  
Drumming his thin fingers on his denim-clad knee, Bakura let his thoughts wander to wherever they wanted as he attentively watched the hand on his watch tick away the seconds until his beloved would be coming home.  
  
3:46:31.  
  
A grin appeared on his face as he heard the bus pull up to the stop right infront of their house outside. The roaring engine of the large vehicle created a steady stream of sound for about twenty seconds, before the sound started becoming lower and lower until he couldn't hear it anymore. Instead, he heard the jingling of Ryou's keys as he slid each silver key into the correct lock. Bakura watched as the main lock to the second, wooden door behind the metal security door twisted so that it was vertical. The doorknob twisted.  
  
3:47:00.  
  
Ryou entered the apartment and slid his bookbag off his shoulder, closing the door behind him; Malik always got home around 3:00pm because he didn't have seventh period. He motioned to lock the locks when two pale arms wrapped around his waist and drew him close. He smiled, knowing automatically that it was Bakura who was embracing him. Ryou leaned back into the strong arms around him, placing his hands atop those of his Egyptian tomb robber.  
  
.  
  
He just managed to slip the lock closed before he was spun around gently. Lips were pressed against his as one of Bakura's hands rose to caress the side of his face. Coming home was always Ryou's favourite part of the day, because he always got pleasantly attacked by an entourage of kisses from his love.  
  
Bakura nibbled Ryou's bottom lip, seeking entrance, and Ryou gladly obliged, letting Bakura's tongue weave its' way into his mouth. Just as he had done so a year ago, Bakura rememorized each and every inch and crevice in the younger's mouth. They eventually parted for air and simply gazed deep into eachother's eyes. Ryou smiled, "You forgot something again."  
  
"What?" Bakura blinked, confused. "What'd I forget?"  
  
"This," Ryou replied, rising to the tips of his toes and placing a delicate kiss on Bakura's cheek.  
  
Good-humouredly rolling his eyes to mask the blush rising in his face, Bakura snaked one arm around Ryou's waist, and with the other arm, ruffled the youth's hair, not stopping until it was messy enough for his liking. "That's one thing I don't mind forgetting daily."  
  
//  
  
Malik lay on the single bed in his shared room with Marik on his back, arms folded across his chest while his head rested in Marik's lap. Silence reigned over the two, but they didn't mind. The smaller of the two stared blankly at the ceiling while Marik played with his hair. It was a relaxing gesture for both of them. Malik's hair was always silky soft and untangled.  
  
Malik's view of the ceiling was suddenly gone as Marik lifted him further into his lap, so that he was sitting in the older's lap, his back against Marik's chest. Marik slid his arms under Malik's and held him tight in an embrace. Malik snuggled into the other Egyptian's arms, resting his head on his shoulder.  
  
"You know..." Marik started, breaking the silence.  
  
"Huh?" Malik looked at him curiously.  
  
Marik didn't answer, but instead leaned forward and grasped Malik's lips with his own. Malik eagerly returned the kiss, placing his hands atop Marik's to steady himself. When they finally broke the kiss in order to breathe, both boys were panting heavily, although Marik regained his breath quicker than the other.  
  
"What was it you wanted to tell me?" Asked Malik, once he had managed to recompose himself.  
  
A simple shrug was his response. "I believe I already told you what I had to say by the way I answered your question," Marik grinned.  
  
Understanding dawned in Malik's amethyst eyes, and he broke into a smile as he fought to keep down a blush. "And I believe I comprehend your answer quite perfectly."  
  
.  
  
A number of hours later, way after the sun had set and moon had risen and the stars had begun shining, Bakura and Ryou sat on the tiled roof of their quaint house, in eachother's arms. Ryou had never really gotten the chance to see the stars before, but now, as he rested in the arms of the one he truly trusted, the stars couldn't have looked more beautiful.  
  
"Bakura?" Ryou asked quietly into the night.  
  
"Nn?"  
  
"Did you ever get the chance to see the stars when you were in Egypt?"  
  
Bakura was silent for a few moments as he thought. "Not really. I never got the chance to go outside at night."  
  
"Never?" Ryou questioned, suprised.  
  
A shake of the head. "But that's old news..." He placed his chin on Ryou's shoulder, and rubbed the side of his face against Ryou's cheek. "I have my own star right here."  
  
The British youth blinked, "Right where?"  
  
Bakura had to hold back his grin, "Well, let's see. He looks exactly like me, only a litte shorter, and..." he trailed off, thinking. Bakura's English was quite good, no doubt about it, but there were some words he just couldn't remember. Silently, he cursed his inability to perfectly learn a second language.  
  
"...and?"  
  
"Be quiet, I'm thinking." The Egyptian muttered, feeling very embarrased. "...Alright, I don't know how to say it in English."  
  
What started off as hardly-controlled giggles eventually erupted into a mountian of laughter from the smaller boy. He wiped his eyes free of the laughter-induced tears, smiling at Bakura. "Well, what's the word for it in Egyptian?"  
  
"Nefer."¹  
  
Ryou's eyes lightened, "It sounds beautiful when you say it."  
  
The now seventeen-year-old allowed a smile to flicker across his features. "I still find it hard to believe that we met the way we did."  
  
"I wouldn't have it any other way." Ryou whispered, snuggling deeper into the warmth and security that Bakura's strong arms provided. He closed his eyes and lay his head atop Bakura's chest. "You know, 'Kura, I never used to believe in angels..."  
  
"What changed that?" Bakura asked curiously, his cheek still pressed against Ryou's.  
  
For a moment, Ryou was silent, before he turned around and kissed Bakura gently.  
  
"You."  
  
Bakura smiled.  
  
//  
  
When the younger of the two almost-albinos woke up the next morning, he was suprised to find himself not in Bakura's lap as he remembered, but lying comfortably on a warm bed underneath equally warm covers. He blinked, suprised, and motioned to sit up when he realized an arm was draped casually around his waist. Looking to his side, Ryou was filled with a sudden calm at seeing how completely peaceful Bakura looked while asleep. Sure, he had seen Bakura sleep before, but never like this, never looking so comfortable.  
  
Ryou softly slid out from underneath Bakura's arm and draped his legs over the edge of the bed. He paused, remembering how just over a year ago he had been sitting in the almost exact same position, preparing to go on a trip to the desert he had never wanted to go on in the first place. But now, Ryou was glad he went along. He was drawn out of his thoughts when Bakura made a sound of discomfort in his sleep.  
  
He turned around, blinking, and realized the arm he had been lying under was shifting around on the mattress. Ryou smiled; Bakura was possessive, even while asleep. Restraining a yawn, Ryou crawled back into the bed beside the Egyptian and gratefully sunk into the mattress. Within a few minutes, he was alseep again. The clock beside their shared bed read a somewhat symbolic 11:05am, Saturday morning.  
  
About ten minutes after Ryou had gone back to sleep, Bakura peeked his eyes open and made sure Ryou wasn't awake and just pretending to be alseep. A single thought crossed his mind as he drew Ryou's slumbering form closer to him.  
  
"Mine."  
  
He knew it was a somewhat childish thought, to say that Ryou was entirely his, but he didn't quite care. He also knew that Ryou wouldn't be his forever, but Bakura was satisfied with the thought of spending the rest of his life with his look-a-like.  
  
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1 - I read in a fic somewhere (don't remember the title/author(ess)) that 'nefer' means 'beautiful'. I thought it was cute to embarras Bakura again ^_^ but keep in mind, I can't remember for the life of me how to say 'beautiful' in Spanish no matter how many times I hear it being said -__-;;  
  
Shori: o_o I did it. This fic is over.  
  
Bakura: ...Someone up there loves me.  
  
Shori: -___-;; *Looks at Bakura* Well, guys, I want to give a personal thank-you to each of you for reviewing and sticking with my fic this long. For what I would consider my first real YGO story, I'm really impressed with how well it's done. I really hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. But, wait! Before you click the review button!  
  
Bakura: ...Oh no...  
  
Shori: I don't know if any of you guys know, but in my FFN bio, I have a list of stories that will be written soon. I've had my friends vote, and so far The Caged Rose is the fic that will be written next. Please take the time to tell me which fic you want to see started next, via review or e- mail. Thanks! *Hugs everyone and showers them with pocky*  
  
Bakura: ...I want pocky...  
  
Shori: ^_^ For not killing me, I give you pocky, Bakura. *Gives him a truckload of pocky*  
  
Bakura: ^_^ 


End file.
